A. Bitter melon selection of land

Bitter melon planting is suitable for spring sowing, and the land should be selected and prepared early,bitter melon likes moisture, temperature, fertilizer, not waterlogging, should choose the upper layer of deep, fertility, drainage and irrigation convenient plot planting.

B. Bitter melon land preparation

Before each mu of high quality farm fertilizer 5000 kg, nitrogen fertilizer 40 kg, phosphorus fertilizer 50 kg, potassium fertilizer 30 kg. Plowing depth of 30 cm, flattening the border, border width of 1.6 meters.

C. Sprouting of bitter melon

Sprouting starts around mid-March. Soak the melon seeds in warm water at 45℃ and 50℃ first, then soak the seeds for 24 hours after cooling, swell them and put them under 30℃ to germinate, and sow seedlings when the seeds show 50% of the white tips, and use nutrient bowl to raise seedlings in the sunny bed.

D. Bitter melon seeding

Roll the paper into a cylinder of 8 cm in diameter and 10 cm in height. Fill with nutrient soil and arrange in the seedbed. Sow 1 seed in each nutrient bowl, and water immediately after water penetration. Sprinkle 1 cm thick fine soil on top, and then cover with plastic sheeting.

E. Bitter melon field management.

The temperature in the seedbed shed is kept at about 30℃ during the day and not less than 15℃ at night. The first true leaves to 4 true leaves period, noon should be ventilated to cool down, keep to 25 ℃ a 30 ℃.

1.Transplanting and planting bitter melon

In the transplanting planting 7 days before a 10 days, to control the moisture, reduce the temperature of the seedbed. Later, gradually increase the time of uncovering the film ventilation, until completely uncovered film.

2.Bitter melon transplants set seedlings

Seedling age in 5 leaves 1 heart when the field planting, April 25 for the appropriate planting period. In the whole row, two rows per row, row spacing 1.2 meters, hole spacing 50 cm. Apply about 20 grams of compound fertilizer to each hole, and plant 1600 to 1700 plants.

3.Build a good stand

When the bitter gourd starts to draw vines, set up a “human” bracket, and connect the top of the bracket with a horizontal pole. Use 2.5m long and 3cm diameter bamboo poles to fix the stand. In the early stage, we should pay attention to the manual vine tying, to assist the melon seedlings on the shelf.

4.Bitter melon whole branch fork

Bitter melon on the shelf, the main vine 50 cm below the melon can not left, the female flowers should removed to facilitate the overall development. When the main vine is sitting on 6-7 melons, leave 5-6 leaves to hit the top, while removing the rest of the vine grandchildren.

5. Bitter melon fertilization management

Bitter melon cultivation has a long reproductive period, and the harvesting period is more than 3 months. Therefore, to ensure that the supply of water and fertilizer is sufficient, especially into the fruit, if the drought should be watered once every 7 days.

6.Before watering

It should be combined with cavity application of urea or compound fertilizer 7kg-10kg per mu, and in case of continuous rains, attention should be paid to drainage. At the same time leaf while spraying potassium dihydrogen phosphate 2 times to 3 times.

F. Pest and disease control

Bitter melon diseases mainly include anthracnose, which occurs mostly in the middle and late stages. Prevention and treatment should be timely removal of residual, rotten, diseased leaves.

(1) Tolbutazin

Also available 50% tolbutazin 800 times-1000 times the solution, or with 70% of the permethrin wettable powder 600 times the solution in the early stage of the disease spray control every day.

(2) Insect pests

Mainly aphids, vegetable green insects, available trichlorfon emulsion 1000 times -2000 times or 40% Legol emulsion 1500 times foliar spraying.

(3) bitter melon planting timely seed picking

A bitter melon on the fruit, is ripe one after another. Bitter melon planting melon-bearing period, to pick a mature seed melon every day

(4) Bitter melon picking

Use scissors to avoid tearing the melon vine. At the same time, weed out mixed plants and melons, and select the seeds with the same color and shape. To do the same day picking, the same day to take the seeds washed and dried to ensure the seed germination rate.

G. Fertilization technology

Base fertilizer per 666.7 square meters of well-rotted organic fertilizer 5000 kg, soil fertilizer 2000 kg, calcium magnesium phosphate 50 kg and a small amount of urea for base fertilizer.

①Before the bitter melon is planted

About 1 month before planting, open three ditches on the shore (one wider and deeper in the middle of the border, and one shallow ditch on each side of the border). Fertilizer is applied to each of the three ditches, of which the middle ditch accounts for 60%, so that the seedlings absorb the fertilizer in the small ditch at the beginning, and then absorb the fertilizer in the middle ditch as the root system grows and extends.

②Fertilizer chasing after planting and slowing down

According to the growth trend of seedlings, spraying the spraying treasure, multi-micro fertilizer and pouring well-rotted thin human manure and urine to promote the smooth growth of vine, leaf and flower at the same time.

③After every 2-3 batches of melons are harvested

20 cm from the roots, open a trench and apply 35 kg of ternary compound fertilizer per 666.7 m2 strip. Or 100 kg of cake fertilizer, 15 kg of urea and 10 kg of potassium chloride.

④Depending on the seedlings quietly

Water 30% humanure once in about 8 days to promote fruit expansion and continue flowering and melon production.

⑤ Entering the harvesting period

Combine with irrigation, apply autumn melon fertilizer as early as possible. Apply 35 kg of ternary compound fertilizer per 666.7 square meters, and spray 0.2% urea and 0.3% potassium dihydrogen phosphate mixture to prevent premature failure, in order to prolong the harvesting period and improve the quality of goods.

Sourcing from:https://nagric.com/bitter-melon-growing-technology/