How to Germinate the Speckled Swan Gourd

Prepare the garden by tilling a 3-inch layer of well-rotted manure into the top 6 inches of soil. Mix it in well and then rake the bed until it is smooth. If you start your seeds indoors, fill a nursery flat with a sterile seed starting mix and water it until it is moist.

Create 1-inch high hills, 6 feet apart, and push two to three speckled swan seeds into each hill. Indoors, push the seeds 1 inch deep into the soil and keep the flat in a bright area. Water the seeds carefully to avoid washing them out of the soil. Keep the soil moist during germination. The seeds will sprout within 10 days.

Water the speckled swan vines with 1 inch of water a week. Stop watering two weeks before you harvest.

Transplant the indoor-started seeds into the garden when they reach 6 inches in height. Space the seedlings 6 feet apart.

Fertilize the speckled swan gourd three weeks after planting. Use a 10-6-4 fertilizer and apply 3 lbs. per 100 square feet of bed. Sidedressing the fertilizer early in the morning is the best way to avoid burning the plants. Dig a 2-inch-deep trench, 2 inches alongside the vine. Scatter the fertilizer on the bottom of the trench, cover it with soil and water to a depth of 6 inches.

Harvest the speckled swan gourd when the stems turn brown. Cut them off with at least 1 inch of stem intact.