How to Grow a Large Bottle Gourd From Seed

Bottle gourds (Lagenaria siceraria) earned their common name for the unusual shape of their fruit, which feature a broad base tapering to a narrow tip. The fruit appears along leafy, climbing vines that grow very large within one growing season, topping out at 12 feet in just a few months. Seeds provide the only reliable means of growing bottle gourds, and although many gardeners plant the seeds directly in the ground, it is best to sow them in containers indoors four weeks before the last spring frost.

6-inch-deep plastic pots
Potting soil
Medium-grit sand
Perlite
Propagation mat

Instructions

- 1
  Fill 6-inch-deep plastic pots with a growing mixture comprised of 2 parts potting soil, 2 parts medium-grit sand and 1 part perlite or vermiculite. Leave a 1/2-inch gap between the top of the pot and the surface of the growing medium.
- 2
  Sow two bottle gourd seeds in each pot. Press them into the soil to a depth of 1.5 inches. Make sure they are completely covered so no light can reach them.
- 3
  Pour 2 cups of water into each pot so the soil is thoroughly moistened at a depth of 3 inches. Maintain moisture at a 3-inch depth during germination.
- 4
  Set the pots on a sunny window ledge where temperatures stay around 78 F during the day. Apply bottom heat with a propagation mat if temperatures are too cool.
- 5
  Watch for germination in four to eight days. Thin the bottle gourd seedlings to one per pot as soon as they produce a pair of mature leaves.
- 6
  Keep the bottle gourd seedlings indoors under warm, bright conditions until one week after the last frost, then plant them 9 feet apart in a sunny bed with good drainage.

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