Bitter Melon Momordica charantia
Other Common Name(s):
Other plants called Bitter Melon:
- Phonetic Spelling
- mo-MOR-dih-kah kar-AN-tee-ah
- This plant has medium severity poison characteristics.
- See below
- Description
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Bitter Goard is a vigorous, tendril-bearing, frost tender, annual vine of the cucumber family and a native of tropical Africa and Asia. The plant itself, is about 4 to 6 inches high, but the vine will grow rapidly to 12 to 20 feet long in a single growing season. The plant boasts round, dark green leaves and goard-like yellow flowers. The flowers give way to 4 to 8 inch warty fruit that ripen to yellow, then orange, before splitting and revealing their seeds. The ripe fruit is attractive, but some people are put off by the odor. The genus name comes from the Latin word for bite, possibly because the seeds of these tropical climbers appear bitten. The species name is of unclear origin and meaning.
Bitter Goard is best grown in rich, organic, well-drained soil in full sun to partial shade. Plants are generally grown like cucumbers, doing well in heat and humidity, and benefiting from the support of a trellis. Start seed indoors in peat pots that decompose in the soil about 4 weeks prior to last spring frost date. Plant seedlings outside when tomatoes are typically planted. The plants will die in fall at the time of first frost.
The plants do best when trained to grow on a trellis. But some gardeners forgo the edible fruit and allow the plant to sprawl along the ground in an ornamental display of attractive foliage, flowers and fruit.
The mature fruit and seeds are toxic and should not be eaten.
Diseases, Insect Pests, and Other Plant Problems:
No known diseases. The plant is a known host for Bactrocera tau fly.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Cultivars / Varieties:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Momordica
- Species:
- charantia
- Family:
- Cucurbitaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- Plants have a long history of use as a vegetable and an herbal medicine.
- Life Cycle:
- Annual
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Seed
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Tropical and Subtropical Africa and Asia.
- Distribution:
- Introduced to southeast Asia, Central and South America, Florida and Alabama.
- Wildlife Value:
- Birds are attracted to the fruit.
- Climbing Method:
- Tendrils
- Edibility:
- Young fruits (green or early yellow colored) are a popular vegetable consumed in some countries. Leafy shoot tips are often used as salad greens.
- Dimensions:
- Height: 12 ft. 0 in. - 20 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 3 ft. 0 in. - 6 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Annual
- Edible
- Poisonous
- Vine
- Habit/Form:
- Climbing
- Growth Rate:
- Rapid
- Maintenance:
- Medium
- Appendage:
- Tendrils
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- High Organic Matter
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Alkaline (>8.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b, 11a, 11b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Green
- Orange
- Fruit Value To Gardener:
- Edible
- Showy
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Fall
- Winter
- Fruit Type:
- Berry
- Fruit Length:
- > 3 inches
- Fruit Width:
- > 3 inches
- Fruit Description:
- The ripe berry in fall and early winter is yellow-orange, warty, with red pulp around seeds. Edible when still green, but poisonous once ripe. It does attract birds. Fruits are 4 to 8 inches long with wrinkled surfaces that split into three curling segments revealing the inner seed surrounded by showy scarlet pulpy arils. Ripe fruits are ornamentally attractive but malodorous.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Solitary
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Fall
- Summer
- Flower Shape:
- Tubular
- Flower Petals:
- 4-5 petals/rays
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- Tubular yellow flowers under an inch with 5 spreading petals bloom from the upper leaf axils in summer and early fall.
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Leaves:
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Rough
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Edible
- Showy
- Leaf Type:
- Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Margin:
- Dentate
- Lobed
- Hairs Present:
- Yes
- Leaf Length:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Width:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Alternate, foul-smelling, deeply palmately lobed, dark green leaves (1 to 4 inches in diameter) have 3 to 7 deep palmate lobes with sharply toothed margins.
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Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Naturalized Area
- Vertical Spaces
- Landscape Theme:
- Edible Garden
- Attracts:
- Bees
- Songbirds
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Humidity
- Problems:
- Malodorous
- Poisonous to Humans
- Weedy
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Poisonous to Humans:
- Poison Severity:
- Medium
- Poison Symptoms:
- TOXIC ONLY IF LARGE QUANTITIES EATEN. Ripe fruits, fruit coats, and seeds cause headache, salivation, facial redness, pupil dilation, stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and muscular weakness.
- Poison Toxic Principle:
- Resin, saponic glycoside, and alkaloids
- Causes Contact Dermatitis:
- No
- Poison Part:
- Fruits
- Seeds
