Why are bitter gourds small? Do you wonder why the fruits on your bitter gourd plants are growing small? There are some factors why the plant bears small fruits. When you know the plants well you will really know if the fruits are in the right size or not. If you grow bitter gourd plants many times before, then you can really tell if the fruits are growing well or not.
Why Are Bitter Gourds Small In Size And How To Increase Fruit Size?
The reasons why bitter gourds are small in size are because of lacking nutrients, lacking water, and lack of sunlight. The plants need the three basic needs and those are water, sunlight, and nutrients.
The plants can get sunlight from the sun, they can get water from the rain or by watering them regularly, and they can get nutrients from the soil naturally or by applying fertilizer. Those things are important for the bitter gourd plants to thrive better and have big fruits.
Small Bitter Gourd Is Normal
The bitter gourd (ampalaya) has many varieties. Some of them are growing big and some are growing small. So if you see that the fruits growing on your plant are small then probably you have small bitter gourd varieties.
It is just normal to see small bitter gourds and the good thing is some of these varieties are disease resistant. So if you want to grow bitter gourds it will be better to grow smaller varieties that are disease resistant even if the fruits grow small.
What if you grow bigger bitter gourd varieties but the plant produces small fruits, what do you need to do? When the fruits are smaller than what is expected, you need to improve the sunlight exposure, improve the nutrients in the soil and make sure they are getting enough water to make them grow just their normal size.
Lacking Nutrients
If you have nutrient-rich soil, it will be great because you will not add fertilizer more often. Growing bitter gourds in that spot is better and the plants will grow fast. The nutrients from the soil will help the plants thrive well and it will help the plants encourage flowers and fruits. But if the soil is lacking nutrients you need to apply fertilizer to bitter gourd plants.
Improving the soil for your plant is one way to show care for bitter gourds. The nutrients in the soil, especially potassium and phosphorus, can help bitter gourd plants that do not produce fruits. You can use chemical fertilizers sold at the store or use organic ones. You can also buy chemical pesticides or make homemade pesticides to control pests in bitter gourd plants. It will be great to have soil rich in nutrients as well as pest-free plants.
Lacking Water
Watering bitter gourds will also help to make small bitter gourds increase their size. Water is important in their growth and it will enter the fruits which helps improve their overall size. You need to make a watering schedule. The plant should always be water if the soil is completely dry.
You can check the soil moisture by pressing your finger in the soil two to three inches deep. If you feel that the soil is dry you need to get your watering tools and give them water. Just make sure to not overdo it to prevent overwatering. When you overwater your plants, some yellow leaves will appear on bitter gourd plants.
Lacking Sunlight
The bitter gourd plant needs sunlight to make its food. You need to plant them in a location where sunlight is available for longer hours. The more light, the more potential food they can create. You will notice how fast bitter gourds grow with more sunlight compared to plants in shade.
Spacing for bitter gourds is important to keep bigger trees from blocking the sunlight. A few feet away will be great to keep the plants consistently getting sunlight. When the plants get enough food, the fruits are going to grow bigger. Still, it depends on which varieties you grow. Some of them will grow small based on their variety even if they get more sunlight.
You will have more fruits when you start harvesting bitter gourds. Keep the plants healthy and you will get what you expected. The lifespan of bitter gourd plants will be in good shape once they don’t experience some problems.
It is great to have an idea of why are bitter gourds small. The fruits may grow small because of their variety. Small bitter gourds are normal for some types of bitter gourd and you should not worry about them. If you want to improve the fruit size you need to make sure that the plants are getting enough water, sunlight, and nutrients, and there are no pests and also diseases attacking the plants.
