A plant like bottle gourd (lagenaria) has been known since ancient times. Dishes and various decorative items were made from such a fruit. In addition, it is valued for its beneficial properties.
Description
Bottle gourd was born in Africa and modern America, besides it has become widespread in Central Europe. Archaeologists have discovered dishes from langenaria, which are already more than 12 thousand years old.
The stem of this crop resembles a liana and can reach a length of up to 15 meters. In addition, it is slightly faceted and there is a slight pubescence on it. The leaves of the plant are pentagonal, corrugated. An interesting feature of this variety is that the flowers can only be seen at night, during the day they are hidden in the axils of the leaves.
Fruits can be round, oval or pear-shaped. They grow up to 2 meters in length. The minimum diameter is 10 centimeters. Also, one langenaria can weigh from 500 grams to 1.5 kilograms. Due to such large sizes, 10-15 fruits grow on one bush.
Due to the individual characteristics of this variety, it has received many names, for example,bottle gourd, jug gourd, gourd, Vietnamese squash or Indian cucumber. Let's deal with cultivation.
Bottle gourd. Cultivation
This variety resembles zucchini in its properties, but the reproduction technology of these two vegetables differs significantly from each other. A long growing season of 120-150 days is an individual feature of such a plant as bottle gourd. Growing at home should begin with the preparation of seeds for seedlings. If you immediately plant a plant in open ground, then it may not have time to mature in a short summer period.
Preparing seeds for seedlings
The bottle gourd, whose seeds are very hard, large and flat, may not germinate at all. To avoid such an outcome, seed must be prepared, namely:
- You need to keep the seeds for a day in warm water heated to 35-40 degrees. For such purposes, you can use a thermos.
- Then they are taken out, wrapped in damp cotton wool or a cloth and placed in a plastic bag, which should be in a place with a stable air temperature of at least 28 degrees.
Seedling reproduction
- As soon as it is noticeable that the seeds have sprouted, they must be moved to pots, the volume of which should not be less than one liter.
- The soil must be fertile and moist.
- In the process of transplanting, it is necessary to deepen the seeds by 3 cm, sprinkle with earth andcrush lightly. To speed up the germination process, you can build a greenhouse that will trap warm air, thereby helping the pumpkin get out more quickly.
- In order for seedlings to appear within 2 weeks, you need to maintain a comfortable temperature equal to 23-25 degrees.
- Seedlings need to be watered in a timely manner, avoiding drought, or vice versa, excessive soil moisture.
Transplanting a plant in open ground
The bottle gourd, which started growing at home, must sooner or later move to the open ground. It is best to wait until the threat of spring frost has passed.
Choosing a landing site:
- Bottle gourd is very thermophilic, so it is quite difficult to grow it in areas where there can be significant temperature differences. Such a plant is unlikely to withstand even the weakest frosts.
- It is also best to avoid areas with high water tables and acidic soils.
- Given that the plant belongs to the liana type, it needs a support, which can be a fence, a pre-designed fence or simple trellises.
It is best to dig shallow holes at a distance of 1 meter from each other, they need to put 1 tablespoon of any fertilizer containing potassium, or 1 cup of ash. Also, the key to successful growth will be half a bucket of humus or compost.
The seedling pot is placed in a hole at the same level with the ground and dug in with a small layer of fertile soil. At the end of the procedure, the pumpkin should be poured with warm water.
Care
- The heat-loving plant is what characterizes the bottle gourd, the care of which should begin with the construction of a shelter. It can be made from improvised means and not removed until favorable temperatures, both during the day and at night.
- When watering the plant, special attention should also be paid to this feature. And be sure to use only warm water. This procedure must be carried out as the soil dries.
- In order for the formation of fruits to be most effective, as soon as the stem of the plant reaches a size of 2 meters, it must be pinched.
Feeding
Bottle Gourd (Lagenaria) is very fond of both organic and mineral supplements. In order for the plant to develop well and bring high-quality fruits, it needs to be fertilized every 7-10 days, alternating these two types of fertilizers.
During mineral dressing, it is best to use the following composition:
- 3 tablespoons of nitrogen fertilizer;
- 2 tablespoons of potash fertilizer;
- 10 liters of water.
One liter of the prepared solution will be used per plant.
When preparing organic top dressing, the most commonly used:
- 1 kg of manure or 0.5 kg of bird droppings;
- 10 liters of water.
The resulting fertilizer is poured under one bottle gourd.
Pollination
To get the unusual fruits of langenaria, it must be pollinated by hand. This need arises due to the fact that the plant blooms in the dark, when almost all pollinating insects are sleeping.
When doing this work, you need to be extremely careful and accurate. One careless movement can easily deprive the entire planned crop. The main difficulty lies in the ability to distinguish a male flower from a female one. The presence of small fruits under the flowers indicates the feminine. In order for the process to be carried out correctly, and the plant to have enough of the substances it needs, several males are used to produce one fruit.
How to dry a bottle gourd
This process has its own characteristics. Bottle gourd is very light, and when dried it is almost weightless, besides, it does not let moisture through. It is for these qualities that it has been valued since ancient times, making dishes from such fruits. The initial step will be the preparation of the material, for this you need to dry the pumpkin.
- This whole process is very long and painstaking, it begins with the fact that the fruit must be cut off, leaving only a small tail, moisture will evaporate through it, and thoroughly washed with soapy water, then it must be dried with a towel.
- It is best to dry the bottle gourd outside so that there is uniform air circulation, but if this is not possible, then you can use a well-ventilated area. Avoid exposure to open sunlight. Neither inUnder no circumstances should the oven or microwave oven be used for such purposes. The process should proceed naturally. This is necessary to maintain the shape and all the quality indicators of the pumpkin.
- During drying, the bottle gourd should be in a suspended state or lie on a wire rack. It is also necessary to avoid contact of several fruits.
- It should be in a bright place for about a week until it hardens and changes the color of the top layer.
- Then it needs to be moved to a dark room, where the whole main process will take place, the duration of which can be up to 6 months.
- Every week the pumpkin should be checked for various defects, such as wrinkling or rot. Such specimens are immediately removed so that the detrimental effect does not spread to he althy fruits. They also need to be gradually turned over so that they dry evenly.
- Mold is not a serious problem, if you notice it in time, you can wipe the pumpkin with a dry cloth.
- The readiness of the fruit can be judged by the sound of the seeds that begin to rattle.
- As soon as this indicator is noticeable, it is necessary to cut off the tail, remove the seeds and leave the bottle gourd to dry on the inside.
- After a few days, the base for various dishes or crafts will be ready. Such a plant can be painted, decorated, polished.
Using Lagenaria
There are many ways to use fruits and stemssuch a plant:
- Various crafts, musical instruments, smoking pipes and even toys are made from bottle gourds.
- Hats or baskets are woven from the stems, they are very durable and beautiful.
- Oil can be obtained from seeds long after harvest.
- We should not forget about the beneficial properties of pumpkin as a food product. The pulp of the fetus is used for diseases of the heart, vascular system, kidneys, bladder, liver and stomach. Also, regular intake of lagenaria can help normalize metabolism and, accordingly, lose extra pounds. It is important to remember that only young fruits, the size of which does not exceed 50 centimeters, can be eaten.
The ability to use the fruit as a material for the manufacture of various crafts - that's what distinguishes the bottle gourd. Caring for and growing a plant is not difficult, and even a beginner can cope with this task, the main thing is to choose the right place for growing vines.
