Return to the Asian Vegetables Forum | Post a Follow-Up

 o
Growing Snake gourd from seed

Posted by xman 7/8 (My Page) on
Thu, May 31, 12 at 11:42

Hello,

I planted about 10 seeds of Snake gourd (Indian variety) that I got from an online source, but none sprouted.

All my other gourds/vegetable seeds sprouted just fine.
I have tried soaking the seeds in water for 24 hours before planting, still nothing.

Is there something more that needs to be done to successfully sprout snake gourd seeds? How long do these take in general to sprout?

thanks,
xman


Follow-Up Postings:

 o
RE: Growing Snake gourd from seed

xman--not sure where you live and temps there. However, in NJ temps, I soak snake gourd seeds over night in warm water; next, break open the hard shell very carefully, so that I do not damage the seed inside. Then, sow this seed in good potting soil and leave the container in warm place. I do see sprout in about 7 to 10 days.

I have heard members saying that they place in damp paper napkin or in a zip lock bags. This also helps in sprouting. I have tried this method too---and it works well.
Anna


 o
RE: Growing Snake gourd from seed

  • Posted by xman 7/8 (My Page) on
    Thu, May 31, 12 at 13:48

Thanks Anna for your reply. I live in TX, so the temperatures are in the 90s.

Do you break and remove the hard shell completely, leaving only the green cotyledons before planting the seed?

As for the paper napkin or zip lock bags, do you also have to remove the seed shell too?

thanks,
xman


 o
RE: Growing Snake gourd from seed

If you try to plant the snake gourds too soon they won't sprout. I live in TX too. The way I did it this year was by using the paper towel method. First soak a paper towel in water and squeeze it ( do not dry squeeze. There should not be water when you touch it) In the middle arrange the seeds flat. close all the sides and put the paer towel in a ziplock (sandwich size) bag. Place this bag in indirect sunlight like in a covered patio. In three to four days u see the roots growing and the shells opened. Now you take the seeds carefully and plant directly in the loose soil where ever you want to plant the vine. Plant the seeds shallow. Water 2 times a day. In less than a week the seeds will sprout.

Hope this helps.

Yamini


 o
RE: Growing Snake gourd from seed

Hello XMAN,
I live in texas too..
Are you watering them a lot and there is not much sun in that area?
Mine have done well and i recently got a bounty of five gourds.
Choose a sunny spot....it should work.


 o
RE: Growing Snake gourd from seed

  • Posted by xman 7/8 (My Page) on
    Sun, Jun 10, 12 at 13:03

Hi,

I may have had a bad batch of seeds. I got some more seeds and planted 5 of them and all five have sprouted. Thanks for all the advice.

xman


 o
RE: Growing Snake gourd from seed

Hello All, is it too late now to plant Snake gourd seeds? I live in CA.

Thanks


 o
RE: Growing Snake gourd from seed

Where in CA are you at? what is your zone ? what are your summer temperature like ? when you expect to get the first frost?

Gourds need about 120 days to mature(like bottle gourds). But if harvest them when they are young, unripe then probably will not need 120 day. It is like growing cucumber and watermelon.


 o Post a Follow-Up

Please Note: Only registered members are able to post messages to this forum.

    If you are a member, please log in.

    If you aren't yet a member, join now!


Return to the Asian Vegetables Forum

Instructions

  • You must be a registered member and logged in to post messages on our forums.
  • Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review the contents and make changes.
  • After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it.
  • It is illegal to post copyrighted material without the owner's consent.
  • HTML codes are allowed in the message field only.
  • No advertising is allowed in any of the forums.
  • If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum.
  • If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help.



 
Click here to learn more about in-text links on this page.