Season

• Ideal season : January-March and September-December
• For the rainfed crop, sowing can be started after the receipt of first few showers during May-June.
• Bitter gourd can be cultivated from lowland to altitudes up to 1,000 m.
• It requires a minimum temperature of 18⁰C during early growth, but optimal temperatures are in the range of 24–27⁰C.
• The crop can tolerate low temperatures, but extreme cool temperatures will retard growth.
• The plants are adapted to a wide variety of rainfall conditions.
• Bitter gourd tolerates a wide range of soil but prefers a well drained sandy loam soil rich in organic matter.
• The optimum soil pH is 6.0–6.7, but plants tolerate alkaline soils up to pH 8.0.