Growing bottle gourd
Lagenaria siceraria · also called lauki, al (Kashmiri)A fast, vigorous vine grown for its long or round pale green fruit, cooked young as a vegetable. It is sown straight into warm soil and cannot take frost.
North-west plains: Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, western Uttar Pradesh
At a glance
Bottle gourd in the North-west plains
Spring (February to March) and rainy season (June to July); November to December under cover2
About 100 to 130 days from sowing to the last picking.
No published guide covers this for the North-west plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.- Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.
60 to 70 days after sowing2
Across India
When to sow it
Twelve growing regions, January to December. Your region comes first.
Wait until February
The next sowing here is February to March.
Under cover, from November to December.
- Sow
- Harvest
- Under cover
- Today
Compare all 12 regionsShow fewer regions
See the dates as a table
| Region | Sow | Nursery | Transplant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North-west plains | February to MarchJune to JulyUnder cover: November to December | Mid-April to JuneMid-August to October | ||
| Temperate Himalaya | April to May | July to mid-September | ||
| Cold desertUnder cover only | Under cover: Late April to May, in a greenhouse | Under cover: July to mid-September | ||
| Sub-tropical foothills | Mid-FebruaryJune to JulyMarchApril to MayUnder cover: First half of November | Mid-April to JuneMid-August to October | ||
| Gangetic plains | February to MarchJune to July | Mid-April to JuneMid-August to October | ||
| North-east hills and valleys | November to MarchMarch to April | February to June | ||
| Arid west | February to early MarchJuly, with the monsoon | Mid-April to JuneSeptember to mid-November | ||
| Central plateau | February to MarchJune to JulyNovember | Mid-April to JuneMid-August to October | ||
| Deccan plateau | June to JulyNovemberJanuary to February | Mid-August to October | ||
| South interior | JulyJanuary | September to NovemberMarch to May | ||
| West coast | January to MarchSeptember to DecemberMay to June, after the first showers | March to mid-JuneNovember to March | ||
| East coast | JulyJanuary | September to NovemberMarch to May |
From seed to harvest
One season, day by day
Days from sowing
Before sowing
Before making the beds
Farmyard manure (FYM)
20 to 25 tonnes per acre
Spread and work in before the beds are made
Day 0
Sow
Day 100 to 130
Last picking
No published guide covers this for the North-west plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Before sowing
Farmyard manure (FYM)2
20 to 25 tonnes per acre · Spread and work in before the beds are made · Before making the beds
Day 0
Sow
Day 6 to 10
Seeds come up1,2,3Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.
Day 60 to 70
First picking2
Every 3 or 4 days in the peak season.
Day 100 to 130
Last pickingNo published guide covers this for the North-west plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Water just after sowing. The spring crop needs frequent watering, every 6 or 7 days; in the rainy season water only sparingly. Allow for 8 or 9 waterings in all.2
What it needs
Soil, sun and warmth
Soil pH1,2,6
6 to 7
Sandy loam to loam, well drained and rich in organic matter. It grows on most soils.
SunlightNo published guide covers this for the North-west plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
At least 6 hours a day
Full sun, at least 6 hours a day.
Temperature1
Grows best at 24 to 27 °C
Frost: none tolerated.
Monthly temperatures for the North-west plains aren't in the library yet.
Water and feeding
Watering2
Water just after sowing. The spring crop needs frequent watering, every 6 or 7 days; in the rainy season water only sparingly. Allow for 8 or 9 waterings in all.
WeedingNo published guide covers this for the North-west plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Hoe and hand weed two or three times until the vines cover the beds.
| When | What | How much | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before making the beds | Farmyard manure (FYM) | 20 to 25 tonnes per acre | Spread and work in before the beds are made |
Varieties and yield
150 to 200 quintals an acre
Yields vary with the plot, the seed and the season.
Punjab Bahar
PAU, 2017. Nearly round, light green, shiny fruit; 9 to 10 fruit a vine.
Punjab Barkat
PAU, 2014. Long, light green fruit; moderately resistant to mosaic.
Punjab Long
PAU, 1997. Long shiny fruit that packs and travels well.
Punjab Komal
PAU, 1988. Early, first fruit about 70 days after sowing; tolerant to cucumber mosaic virus.
Good neighboursNo published guide covers this for the North-west plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Grows well with
Keep it away from
Pests and diseases2
Organic and cultural controls only.
Red pumpkin beetle
Signs
Attacks seedlings; a bad attack can wipe out the crop.
What to do
- After the seed comes up, dust the plants with dung ash 3 or 4 times at weekly intervals.
Prevention
- A November sowing escapes the beetle.
Aphid
Signs
Sucks sap from the leaves in February and March and spreads virus diseases.
What to do
- Clear weeds on bunds, waste land, roadsides and channels, where aphids build up.
Prevention
- Do not overfeed with nitrogen; heavily fed plants carry more aphids.
Whitefly
Signs
Nymphs and adults suck sap from the leaves and cut the yield.
What to do
- When whitefly first appears, give 1 or 2 sprays of PAU neem extract, 1200 ml per acre in 100 to 125 litres of water.
- Clear weeds on bunds and channels.
Fruit fly
Signs
Punctures tender fruit and spoils it; serious on bottle gourd.
What to do
- Collect infested fruit and bury it deep in the soil.
Red spider mite
Signs
Sucks sap from the leaves.
Powdery mildew
Signs
A white floury coat on leaves, stems and other soft parts, in dry weather. Fruit is poor in quality and flavour.
Downy mildew
Signs
Small water-soaked spots, yellow on top of the leaf with grey down below; spots turn brown in the centre.
What to do
- Destroy cucurbit vines that carry over winter.
- Avoid flood irrigation.
Collar rot and damping off
Signs
Brown to dark brown patches on the stem at soil level; the plant dies.
Prevention
- Use healthy seed.
Pythium rot
Signs
Water-soaked patches girdle the stem; plants collapse and fruit rots.
Prevention
- Avoid flood irrigation.
Mosaic (virus)
Signs
Dark and light green patches on the leaves; leaves turn pale, small and finger-like late in the season. Spread by seed and aphids.
What to do
- Pull out plants with virus.
Prevention
- Collect seed only from healthy plants.
Root knot nematode
Signs
Poor, patchy growth, yellow small leaves and knots on the roots; vines wilt by day and die early.
What to do
- Plough often in May to June to expose the soil to the sun.
Prevention
- In infested fields, rotate with rice, oats, wheat or taramira.
Seed and the season's end
Saving seed1,2Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.
Keep a seed crop at least 800 m from other bottle gourd varieties. Check it three times (early growth, flowering and fruiting, and before harvest) and pull out off-type and sick plants.
When the seed is ready
Seed fruit is ready when its skin turns a dull green.
Cleaning the seed
Dry the harvested fruit, then take out the seed, grade it and pack it.
Keep dry seed in a sealed container in a cool, dark place.
After the last picking2
Near big markets PAU suggests long brinjal (June to October), then late cauliflower (November to February), then bottle gourd (February to June).
Destroy old cucurbit vines after the crop so downy mildew has nowhere to carry over.
Rotation
Where root knot nematode builds up, rotate with rice, oats, wheat or taramira.
Growing under cover2
PAU sows a protected crop in November to December under polythene or polynet cover.
Sources
Where this comes from
Our team has checked this guide against the sources at the end of the page.Reviewed by our team on 13 November 2026.
These published guides are the sources. Where none of them covers a detail for this region, the page shows an AI suggestion and labels it.
- Package of Practices for Cultivation of Vegetables 2021 (chapter 6, Bottle gourd; cucurbit table, plant protection, nutrition garden and multiple cropping)Punjab Agricultural University, LudhianaRead the source
- Production Technology of Vegetables and Flowers (VSF-231), Part I: Vegetable production (cucurbitaceous crops; protected cultivation)CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur (Department of Vegetable Science and Floriculture)Read the source
- Advisory for Kharif Season in Uttarakhand (2 May 2020)G B Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Directorate of Extension EducationRead the source
- Bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria): crop production guide (Horticulture, vegetables)TNAU Agritech Portal, Tamil Nadu Agricultural UniversityRead the source
AI Farm Manager · In development
Plan this crop on your land
AI Farm Manager will turn guides like this one into a plan for your own plot. It doesn't make plans yet.