Nice I am going to try this.

be careful guys,if the ones you buy at the store are hybrids then the fruit u will get from their seeds will be diffrent and maybe not as good tasting.

That's what I was wondering, if they are hybrids. Also, are the fuzzy melons hybrids?

Hello,

Do you have Bitter Melon seeds?
Do you have any other Asian/Indian veg seeds? We can exchange.

thanks

INTERESTING. I always thought that the seeds you get from green BM are not mature. I was WRONG again. lol

Interesting indeed, I'm surprised I missed this thread last year. The seeds were most likely something less than fully developed, and would probably have died if allowed to dry... but planted immediately, they were successful. None of the stored energy - what there was of it - was lost in storage.

The question is: what kind of bitter melon did Janovan's plants produce? Commercial BM is usually hybrid, and would produce variable results from saved seed (the F2 generation). I'm in the third year of attempting to stabilize a nice Chinese cultivar that was originally a hybrid.

This is true for all tropical vegetables.You may take green seeds which are hard enough from fresh fruits and sow them when temperature is above 80 deg.F.The seeds you select should not get crushed when you press the seed between index finger and your thumb.I have tried this with peppers, gourds and legumes.Temp below 80 deg. F will rot the seeds.

I have good experience from Evergreen Seeds. I have several 7 feet vines now. Hoping they will flower/fruit soon!

Here is a link that might be useful: Evergreen Seeds

I got fresh seeds, just taken from the ones i cooked today. this is from china phenotype, the pale color.

I will sow few in coir pellers, and I might have about 20 seeds to to share.

I am including this in my blog.

Anyone want some?

Here is a link that might be useful: Angelina's Zone 5B Blog

Thanks for sharing the tip, Janoyan. I'm tried this 3 days back. Hoping to see some results. Crossing the fingers:)

Like you said, I was in same boat...used up bunch of Bitter melon seed pockets from Asian stores (which is not cheap!)with no luck. (Attempts scattered over last 2 years)

I tried this twice, since last month. All my seeds rotted :'( Pretty warm here. temps from 75-80 F. Didn't work for me. Will have to try again next year. Kind of late for this year.

It's utter nonsense that one should not buy bitter melon seeds. I buy my bitter melon seeds (and all other oriental vegetable seeds) through Evergreen and have not had an issue. Federal germination standards for this type of seed are 75%.

Germinating seeds with a hard coat like this can be tricky. I get best results by laying my seeds out on a moistened paper towel on a plate, then folding that paper towel over the top of the seeds. Then I cover the whole thing in plastic wrap. The paper towel must be kept moist, but not soaking.

After two days or so I start checking the seeds at least once a day. Those that have started putting out a root are planted into a seedling cell with moist potting mix. I keep these indoors at regular room temperature until they emerge, and then move them outdoors into the sun.

I didn't write down how many seeds that I started, but I didn't throw out but a few for not germinating. Ended up with 30 to 40 seedlings, which are now mostly transplanted around my south patio in the hopes of some living shade.

If transplanted directly into seedling pots, I get terrible germination. I ascribe this to not being able to carefully enough control the temperature and moisture.

Have to agree ralleia, it's not the seeds, it's the supplier.
I sell the seeds, and I later use those same seeds to grow my own plants. The key is freshness especially with Momordica species.
I rotate our bitter melon seeds every 4-6months, and I plant the next crop from the "old" stock, have been doing it for a couple years now, no dramas at all.
I just use dirt and plant them out into trellised rows, and if they didn't grow well from seeds, I wouldn't be able to sell them....
My fresh bitter melon seeds, and if you guys have anything cool that isn't in the website I do love barter.
:)
Hit me up, make an offer, would much rather a cool new variety that I don't have than $.
fairdinkumseeds@rocketmail.com

There was nothing in ralleia's comments that was critical of the supplier; to the contrary, they pointed out the influence of planting techniques (for good or ill) on success rates. I have had no issues here in the U.S. with either commercially produced seed, or seed received in trade.

It should be pointed out that bitter melon is easy to save seed from, by simply letting a fruit or two ripen on each vine. If the plants are healthy, the effect on yield will be minimal, if any. You need to check the ripening fruit often, though, because the fruit will split open when ripe, spilling the seeds on the ground. To get clean seed, I place the seed (red gel sac and all) on newsprint, then try them where there is good air circulation. When the red flesh has completely dried, you can pry the seeds out with a tooth pick, and the seed will come out clean. The seeds will still need additional drying before storage. My bitter melon seed generally has at least fair germination for 5-6 years.

Yep, I agree, raellia wasn't critical of her supplier or the OP's, but I had assumed the comment made by them, was a response to the OP's statement>>>

"Don't buy bitter melon seeds. At my first attempt to germinate bitter melon from seeds I bought a packet of it from a local grocer and another from a "reputalbe" dealer fron Canada. So far only out about $10. However my success was zero."

Which does quite clearly suggest an issue with the suppliers of commercial seeds, and as is the subject of the thread, a reasonable assumption to make.....
I am in agreement with raellia's statement>>>>

"It's utter nonsense that one should not buy bitter melon seeds. I buy my bitter melon seeds (and all other oriental vegetable seeds) through Evergreen and have not had an issue."

I then also added my comment that if anyone is having dramas I am happy to send out some super fresh seeds to have a crack at, and I personally just grow them all in normal dirt then move them out to the rows. I also added I love barter as I honestly do so don't be shy if you have something cool.

The whole Mormordica family(bitter melon, gac, balsam pear, spiny gourd) germinate very very easily from fresh seeds, but once they get more than about 6months old the strike% drops rapidly and the time before germination increases. Fresh you should get ~90% in a couple weeks, older than a year and it can drop to ~60%(depending on moisture content) and takes a few months for them to pop sometimes.

If you are saving your own seeds and have a big bag that's not a drama, only need to save a couple as each fruit can produce 10-40seeds, but if you are buying a small packet of 5-20 seeds, freshness is important, equally if not more important to planting medium....

Ralleia, how many seeds do you get from Evergreen in one packet? Due to possible germination trouble, should I get one or two packets or an ounce? I'd like to start with at least 20 - 25 seeds.

Kitazawa costs more and puts 7-12 seeds in a pack, according to the website. Has anyone germinated seeds from Kitazawa and had good luck?

Both also have angled luffa, another veg I want to try. Would prefer to buy from Evergreen, but they dont mention how many seeds are in the packet.

Edited to say that I ended up ordering from Seeds of India, hopefully they will germinate, the website stated 15 seeds per pack for bitter gourd and 20 - 25 for angled luffa.

"Ralleia, how many seeds do you get from Evergreen in one packet? Due to
possible germination trouble, should I get one or two packets or an
ounce? I'd like to start with at least 20 - 25 seeds."

I would recommend ordering two packets. One of the bitter melons I grow is originally from them, albeit from quite a few years back...it had just over 50% germination that year.

Zeedman, I bought 5 Bitter Melon types from Seeds of India. Jawahar, Bahadur, and Tagore are spiky Indian types, and Sayonara and Shanghai are smoother Oriental types. Any thoughts on which of them might grow better in Zone 5? And will they cross pollinate? I might just do what Gardendawgie said, and let them cross pollinate, and save seeds from the earliest setting fruits.

If anyone wants to try bitter melon, but can't grow it, and does not have an Asian market nearby, you can buy it, dried, from Mountain Rose Herbs for 13.00 a pound. If you buy 5 pounds of anything from them, you get a 10% bulk discount. I bought several pounds from them, to try it as a tea, and liked it. It is supposed to have health benefits.

The tea does have health benefits, especially for diabetics. Some Filipino friends of mine request to clip off the young vine tips just before frost, and use them both for tea, and for cooking.

I am not familiar with any of the S.O.I. varieties, but note that Jawahar, Bahadur, and Sayonara are hybrids, so seed saved from them may not resemble the parents. I say 'may' because it has been my experience that some "hybrid" bitter melons appear to breed true, and may be marked "hybrid" just to discourage seed saving. I note also that S.O.I. provides very little DTM info on the varieties they offer.

Bitter melon flowers are fragrant & highly attractive to bees, so crossing would be very common if several varieties were grown in close proximity. Provided that your intent is to develop a land race which performs well in your area, that might not be a bad thing.

Quite a few bitter melon varieties will produce (to varying degrees) in short-season areas, provided that there is enough summer heat. There is quite a bit of variation in DTM, and there is wide variation in terms of yield.
I grow a very short DTM variety that is small fruited & quite bitter, but highly productive... it has succeeded even in the cool climate of the Pacific Northwest. I would be happy to send you some seed; if it is not already what you seek, it may contribute its earliness &
productivity to your eventual land race.

Added: I recommend starting bitter melon seed indoors as transplants. You will get better germination, and an earlier yield. This is especially helpful when growing newly purchased seed, which IME can have very erratic germination.

Zeedman, I sent you an email!

Happy, email received.

Bitter Melon seeds are best when sown from fresh seed. They simply do not keep/store well. That's why your germination rate was low with packets.

The only time I had success with bitter melons is when I used fresh seeds from store bought melons. One plant produced 45-46 melons. I once managed to get package seeds sprout but each plant produced only 4-5 melons.

There have been several comments in this thread about bitter melon seeds having a short storage life. I respectfully disagree.

I have been saving & planting my own bitter melon seeds since the 1990's. Because I have collected many varieties & can only grow one per location, it might be 5-6 years or more before a particular variety gets regrown. I start all bitter melon as transplants; this year I planted "Taiwan Large" (from 2012 seed) and "Abashi" (from 2013 seed). I also planted a de-hybridized Chinese variety (2020 seed) as a backup. There was no difference in germination between all three varieties, which each had about 90% germination.

To put this in perspective, all seed has been stored in zippered freezer bags, at room temperature, with the bags rolled up to squeeze out excess air & stored in a dark, dry location. Proper drying is important; if the seed moisture is too high when stored and/or the seeds are exposed to heat, they will deteriorate quickly. Air-tight containers are best for storage.

To get the best germination, start the seeds indoors in pots. Water-permeable pots (peat, paper, soil blocks, etc.) are best, since they avoid root damage during transplanting. It isn't necessary to nick the seeds; after planting, soak the pots & seeds in a tray over-night, then pour off any excess water. A few drops of fertilizer in the soaking water will improve germination (organic fertilizer can be used if it has a high N content). I recommend placing the pots in a warm location until germination... I use 80 F. degrees, but a heat mat, or a box with an electric bulb for heat, will work too. Germination should take 7-8 days; the seedlings should be moved to direct sunlight as soon as they emerge.