Ridge gourd / Ribbed gourd / Lufa Acutangula is mainly used for culinary purpose. Ridge gourd is an important Indian vegetable and can be grown throughout the year. It belongs to the Cucurbitaceae family and is popular in South and East India. The gourd along with the leaves and stem can be used as a vegetable.
Other names of the ridge gourd are Sirola, Jhinga, Gosalen, Janchi, Kalitori, Peerae, Turrel, Dodka, Beerakaya, Turai, Peerkankai, Heerekai, Peechanga, etc. It is an excellent blood purifier and has laxative properties. It is beneficial for diabetic patients and has high dietary fiber. It aids in weight loss and has antibiotic properties. The different varieties of ridge gourd are Desi Chaitali, Pusa Nasdar, Phule Sucheta, Kankan Hairta, Pusa Nutan, Pant Torai, Swarna Manjari, Punjab Sadabahar, Satputia, Arka Sujat etc.
Ridge gourd requires support for its growth and development. It is a low investment, high yielding crop and good commercial success as a crop. It is known to be good for digestion and hence useful for people suffering from digestive disorders. It has many uses as discussed above and great demand as well. The fruits should be allowed to fully ripen and then allowed to dry out. The fruit is usually harvested at a young stage.
It can easily be grown in pots, containers, backyard, poly houses of the green house. Ridge gourd thrives well in warm and hot climatic conditions and can be grown in a wide range of soils. Ridge Gourd is also popularly known as Loofa in many countries and is a pulpy vegetable and belongs to the Cucumber family. It is tasty and widely used in day to day cooking in India. It is cultivated widely in the tropical regions around the world and believed to originate from Tropical Asia.
It is dark green in color and mainly grows on vines. It is commonly used as Pachhadi, Dal, Sambhar, Turiya Patra, Turiya mag ni dal, Panchkutiyu Shaak, valval, Turai aur nariyal, turai chutney, turai onion vegetable, Kootu, turai aur moong ki dal, turia dhokli, etc. It can be cut and used as a basic side dish or vegetable.
It is highly nutritious and contains vitamins like vitamin-C, Thiamin and minerals and dietary fiber. It acts as an antioxidant and purifies the blood. Ensure you wash it properly before use.
You might find it difficult to chop as the outer cover is tough and sharp as it has ridges. Although it is difficult to chop like the jackfruit but is tasty after the outer cover is removed. The inner core once chopped is easy to cook. Gourds are considered nutritious and popular in India and the world. Ridge gourd can be grown throughout the year where irrigation is possible.
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Process of growing Ridge gourd
⦁ Time / season / climatic conditions –
Ridge gourd thrives well in a warm and hot climatic condition. The ideal temperature for growing ridge gourd / ribbed gourd is between 24 – 35 °C.
Turai can be grown in summer or rainy seasons. It cannot be grown in winter season as it does not tolerate temperatures below 24 °C. The seed sowing time depends on the type of crop. Normally ridge gourd is planted during January and July.
⦁ Seed rate / Spacing –
Ridge gourd is propagated by seeds. Use only good quality seeds that are disease free. Treat the seeds with Pseudomonas fluorescens 10 gms or Trichoderma viride 4 gms /kg of seeds. Usually, 5 – 6 kg seeds/ha are used.
The seeds are sown in the dibbling method @ 1.5 m – 2.0 m x 1.0 m – 1.5 m. Sow 3 seeds in each pit. After germination, reduce this to 2 seedlings. Seeds can be sown in polybags too @ 2 seeds per bag.
⦁ Soil type / land preparation / Irrigation –
Ridge gourd grows well in most soils, but sandy loam soils are best suited. The soil or main field should be prepared well by giving 4 – 5 ploughings until fine tilth stage. The normal pH range is 6.5 – 7.5. The crop requires good drainage. Remove any pre-existing weeds. Test the soil well before cultivation.
Dig pits of 30 cm x 30 cm x 30 cm @ 2.5 m x 2 m spacing from the basins. Use organic FYM about 40 – 50 cartloads. Apply a fertilizer dose of 250:100:100 kg N:P:K/ha through the split application. The remaining dose of N is given a month later as usual. The crop requires bamboo sticks for support to grow upward @ each pit. During early stages, provide shallow cultivation. It takes 4 – 5 days to start germination and the layout used is ring and basin.
Water the basin well dibbling the seeds and later @ of once a week. Drip irrigation is used in ridge gourd cultivation. Summer crop requires frequent irrigation in an interval of 3 – 4 days. Rainy season crop does not require irrigation. Irrigation usually depends on the season and the soil moisture holding capacity.
⦁ Weed management / Pest control –
Intercultural operations are carried out to control weeds. Weeds must be removed before beginning the cultivation process to remove older weeds from previous crops. Manual weeding is carried out in the initial stages of plant growth to avoid the competence of the main crop for nutrients.
Hoeing is carried out thrice to control weeds. Spraying Ethrel 250 ppm 4 times, 2 weeks after sowing @ weekly intervals increases the crop yield.
Beetles, fruit flies, and caterpillars are controlled by spraying Dichlorvos 76% EC 6.5 ml /10 liters of water or Trichlorofon 50% EC 1.0 ml/liter of water
Powdery mildew is controlled by spraying Dinocap 1 ml/liter of water or Carbendazim 0.5 g/liter of water
Downy mildew is controlled by spraying Mancozeb 2 gm/liter of water twice @ 10-day interval
⦁ Harvesting –
Ridge gourd is ready for harvest 45 – 60 days from sowing depending on the variety. The average yield is 70 – 90 quintal/ha. The full-grown tender fruit should be harvested at weekly intervals with a sharp knife. Since these are long gourds, care should be taken to see that they are hanging in the downward direction.
⦁ Health Benefits of Ridge Gourd –
⦁ Ridge gourd is low in calories and therefore helps in weight management and contain high fiber
⦁ Turai contains antioxidants and are used to purify blood and inflammations
⦁ They are good for digestive orders
⦁ They help in controlling diabetes
⦁ Ribbed gourd keeps the body cool and reduces heat in the body
⦁ They are good for the hair and aid in curing piles
⦁ They have antibiotic properties that help heal jaundice
⦁ They are excellent for skin treatments such as eczema and psoriasis
⦁ They are high in beta-carotene and good for eyes
⦁ Turai helps reduce constipation related issues as they have laxative properties
⦁ They are used in Ayurvedic medicines
Nutritional value of ridge gourd – as per Wikipedia
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0.3 g 0%
Saturated fat 0 g 0%
Polyunsaturated fat 0.1 g
Monounsaturated fat 0.1 g
Cholesterol 0 mg 0%
Sodium 21 mg 0%
Potassium 453 mg 12%
Total Carbohydrate 14 g 4%
Dietary fiber 2.9 g 11%
Sugar 5 g
Protein 0.7 g 1%
Vitamin A 5% Vitamin C 9%
Calcium 0% Iron 2%
Vitamin D 0% Vitamin B-6 5%
Vitamin B-12 0% Magnesium 5%