Oriental pickling melon

oriental pickling melon, production aspects, Techniques, varieties, land races, products, Nutritional importance, future techniques

1. ORIENTAL PICKLING MELON - RAGULRAJ H

2. Oriental pickling melon ( Cucumis melo var. conomon ) Family - Cucurbitaceae Chromosome number - 24 Annual Herbaceous Native - Asia Most ancient form of melon domesticated in China (Jeffrey 1980; Walters 1989) Evolved from wild melon (var. agrestis ) in China (Walters 1989) Traditionally cultivated in India, China, Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia (Munger and Robinson) (1991) It is Mentioned in a Chinese text dating back to 560 BCE ( Keng 1974)

3. sericeous ovaries (appressed, usually very short hairs) Pilose or lanate ovaries ( i.e., spreading, usually long, hairs) (Kirkbride, 1993; Asya Stepansky et al ., 1999) Conomon Makuwa chinensis acidulous momordica Cantaloupe reticulates Adana Chandalak Ameri Inodorus Flexuosus chate , Tibish dudaim morren var. conomon var . makuwa There are two types of fruits, one used as a vegetable (non-sweet and eaten raw or pickled) And one that can have high sugar content. Only the first one (oriental pickling melon) has survived in the conomon group (Robinson and Decker-Walters 1997)

4. Visual appearance Slender fruits, averaging 20 to 30 cm in length and 8 to 10 cm in diameter, and have a cylindrical, elongated shape with rounded ends Skin is shiny, smooth, thin, and pale green, with some varieties bearing faint green-yellow stripes Flesh is pale green to white and is crisp, aqueous, and firm Encasing many small seeds that are flat, pale yellow, and bitter Crunchy with a mild, sweet, and subtly sour flavour When cooked, the melon retains its firm and crisp consistency and has a neutral taste, often absorbing other flavours

5. Landraces of Oriental pickling melon/culinary cucumber grown in Southern States of India Malabar cucumber This is also known as Mangaluru cucumber ( Mangaluru sauthekai in kannada ). Very common in Dakshina Kannada area. It is also known as Madras cucumber. Fruits are golden yellow Kani Vellari / Vellarikka (Malayalam): Fruits are golden yellow with green patches as above case. Not bitter Dosakai or Dosakaya /yellow cucumber /lemon cucumber (Telugu): Larger fruits with green patches turning brown when mature. The mature fruit rind becomes yellow in colour, which means it is ready for harvesting. Flesh is white, used in sambar and pachadi preparations

6. Nutritional and uses of oriental pickling melon(culinary cucumber) s liced thin and dry stir fried with coconut and raw mango paste and chillies to make a tasty and nutritious side dish to go with rice in Karnataka Andhra Pradesh in south eastern India called dosa avakai , which is a pickled dish. The pickling process is quick compared to mango pickle Dosakai stores very well after pickling (Anon., 2017b). Rich in vitamins A, C, E and K T hey have an easy, agreeable flavour (Vidya, 2012). 3.6 per cent protein, 4 percent fat, and 2.5 percent carbohydrate Prevent M acular degeneration in the eyes. The antioxidants in these seeds can keep blood cholesterol under check and decrease the risk of cancer. T he vitamin C fights cold and flu by boosting immunity. M inerals like magnesium, phosphorous and potassium that regulate blood pressure.” (Yogesh Pawar , 2016).

7. Katsura-uri ( Cucumis melo var. conomon ), (a traditional variety of plant) vegetable cultivated in Kyoto, Japan is at the risk of extinction. Japanese food culture has traditionally used immature and mid-ripened fruit in the preparation of pickles Kastura juice as a functional drink to prevent obesity and diabetes and its fragrance as same like a musk melon It is featured at Gion -Matsuri, which is a traditional summer festival held in July in Kyoto. The pickled Katsura-uri is a favourite snack and side dish to meals during the celebration and is believed to be a food that honours the celebrated shrine of the festival. TRADITIONAL OF JAPAN

8. PRODUCTS

9. Soil, climate and pH Climate -Warm season crop Soil - well drained sandy loam soil rich in organic content Season - January-March, September-December and May- August South west monsoon is mostly preferred in Karnataka and Kerala regions Minimum temp of 18 ° c during early growth but optimum temp 24-27 °c Crop can tolerate low temperature but extreme cold retards the growth Optimum pH – 6.0-6.7 but it can tolerate alkaline soil up to pH 8.0

10. Sowing time for better output November to February sown plants show early female emergence rather than Aug and September Fruit length and diameter are highest in August sown crop Fruit weight and yield /vein and seed production are highest in August (1.15 and 2.99 kg) and September (0.794 and 1.56 kg) sowing Fresh and dry weight – August Overall – August –September (for Kerala ) Rajendra, A., 2017. Effect of sowing time on fruit and seed yield in oriental pickling melon (Cucumis melo var. conomon). IJCS, 5(4), pp.1910-1912.

11. Varieties Kerala Agricultural University has developed three kani vellari cultivars namely Arunima (accession CAKAU-01) Mudicode (accession CMKAU02) Saubhagya (accession CSKAU-03)

12. Mudicode Released by KAU Average yield 30.4 tonners per hectare Selected through the germplasm collection. Grown as a home garden Fruit weighs 1.8-2.5 kg A verage yield of 30.4 tonnes per hectare Average weight of fruit 1.8-2.5 kg A ttractive oval- shaped fruits can be harvested from 55-50 days after sowing, and the crop will last until 79 or 88 days Spacing 2 m x 1.5 m About 500-750 g seeds will be required to cover a hectare ( Agri.Correspondent , 2001)

13. Arunima Released by Kerala Agricultural University (KAU), Trichur Spreading growth habit with branched stem , vigorous The leaves are broad with hairy veins and petioles Male flowers are produced in clusters F emale flowers are solitary Fruits are large sized long fruit tapering at one end and attractive with uniform cylindrical shape The fruits are bright green with creamy spots when tender and they turn orange yellow upon ripening Average length of the fruit is 33.14 cm and the girth 40.72 cm The flesh thickness of the fruit is 3.6 cm F ruit will contain about 645 seeds The average fruit weight is 2.3 kg at full maturity The total duration of the crop is 60 days Uniform large cylindrical fruits that are bright green with creamy spots at tender stage and attractive orange yellow at ripening i mproved variety developed from a local type collected from Kasaragode district T olerant to downy mildew, but is susceptible to mosaic disease under field conditions Average yield 27 tonnes /hectare The fruits are of good quality with a long shelf life. It can kept 90 days without spoilage under normal filed conditions variety should ideally be sown in the second week of January Harvest takes place at first week of April enabling the farmers to get premium price in the market ( Agri.Correspondent , 2001)

14. Saubhagya It is a short duration L ess vigorous high yielding variety, less spreading type M aturing in 65-70 days and is suitable for high density planting S mall to medium sized oblong green fruits with light green stripes, which turn golden yellow on ripening Early variety suitable for close planting needs more nutrients than the crop planted at the normal recommended spacing Its occupy a special niche for summer rice fallow cultivation in trench method Maturity about 65 days spacing of 1.00 m x 0.30 m in channels accommodating 33,333 plants per hectare ( Ningaraju , and Joseph, 2014) This variety has been released by KAU ( Ningaraju , and Joseph, 2014)

15. Seed rate and sowing 500-750 g seeds will be required to cover a hectare ( Agri.Correspondent , 2001) Seed are soaked in water for 24 hours prior to planting for better germination Soaking seeds in 0.2% Bavistin solution reduces the soil borne fungus Sow 4 or 5 seeds in a pit at 1 -2 cm depth Pre sowing irrigation 3-4 days before sowing is beneficial Avoid deeper sowing as it delays germination Seeds germinate within 4-5 days Thinning practises is performed after 2 weeks and only 3 plants per pit retained

16. Spacing Prepare the soil to fine tilth by harrowing and ploughing There are tow methods pit and trench method Mudicode (high spreading type)-Pit of 60 cm diameter and 30-45 cm depth and a spacing of 2×1.5 m ( recommended by KAU ) Saubhagya ( less spreading type)-closest spacing of 1.0 x 0.30 m (trench method) high yield compared to pit method and as rice fallow of Kerala RESULT TRENCH METHOD Female flowers 75.8% increased Harvest date 10 days reduces from 57 days(pit method) Fruit weight 774.4 g and 682.5 g Yield 28.4 t ha-1 (184%greater than pit method) Leaf area 88.8 cm2 Spacing influences growth and productivity of less spreading and short duration oriental pickling melon ( Cucumis melo var. conomon Mak . ) cv. ‘ Saubhagya ’ M. Jamuna Devi and T.R. Gopalakrishnan* Department of Olericulture, College of Horticulture, KAU P.O., Thrissur 680 656, Kerala

17. Fertilizer and irrigation Apply FYM @20-25t/ha as basal NPK – 70:25:25 kg/hectare (N is applied at two split doses at the time of vining and at flowering For pit- 28:10:10g of NPK Initial stages irrigate- 3-4 days interval Irrigate alternative stage- flowering and fruiting Highest fruit yield of 72.4 tonnes per hectare was obtained by drip fertigation with the 100 percent Ep combined with 200 per cent of recommended dose of fertilizer ( Ningaraju , and Joseph, 2014). Furrow irrigation is a ideal method of irrigating but in water limited areas drip is also used

18. Intercultural operations Thinning is done after two weeks of sowing Earthing up is done during raining season Weeding is done at the time of fertilizer application Mulching is done were crops are grown on raised bed Spraying of flowering hormones after they have 6 to 8 true leaves increase the number of female flowers Application of gibberellic acid 25-100ppm increase the female flowers by 50% and Etherl at the rate of 3-3.5 ml in 10 lit of water increase femaleness I nter-space is mulched with dry coconut fronds and the vines are allowed to trail on the dry coconut fronds.

19. Fruits aged 33 days (after anthesis) showed maximum values for fruit weight, length and perimeters, and seed characters (seed number, weight, germination percentage and vigour index) ( Krishnakumary , K.; Devadas, V.S.; Joseph, M.P. 2004) The orange color of fruit indicates that the fruit is over ripe and is excellent for extracting the seeds (D’Souza, 2010). S pecial feature that the fruits can be stored up to 8-10 months without losing their freshness. They can be stored for many weeks by hanging them from the ceiling, firmly bound by thin coconut fibre ropes For long distance transporting green fruits are harvested.

20. Harvesting and yield First harvesting of fruits can be done 45-55 days after sowing Harvesting can be done only after 10 days (at least) of insecticide / fungicide application. For pickling and salad it is harvested immature (10 days after fruit set) and for cooking purposes ( 4 weeks after fruit set) it is harvest fully mature Allowing old fruits remain on vein it reduce young fruit production Avoid blushing and crushing it reduces keeping quality Fruit yield per vine were highest in August (1.15 and 2.99 kg) and September sowings (0.794 and 1.56 kg) Average yield- 10-12t/ hec Seed yield- 7-10kg/ hec (10.15kg/ hec in Aug)

21. Diseases Downy mildew- Pseudopernospora cubensis Symptoms Yellow spots on the upper surface and water soaked fungal spots on the lower surface of leaves. Chlorotic specks can be seen on the upper surface of the leaves severe during rainy season Management Spray 10% solution neem preparation Disease incidence is severe spraying mancozeb 0.2% use full Apply karathane 1g/l The incidence was less in genotypes like BCMCO-02 (14.00 %), Sirsi Local (16.29 %) and BCMSO03 (17.43%) resistance varities High in GR-2-1 (27.07%) followed by GR-4 (26.58%) and GR-4-1 (26.23 %) ( Takada et al13 ., Yoko et al15 ., Dhiman et al5 ., Mitchel et al8 ., Choi et al3)

22. Powdery mildew- Erysiphe cichoracearum Symptom Small round whitish spots on leaves and stem The spots enlarge and coalesce rapidly and white powdery mass appears on the upper leaf surface Heavily infected leaves become yellow, and later becomes dry and brown Extensive premature defoliation of the older leaves will result in yield reduction Management Spray dinocarp 0.05% Less Incidence in Mysore Local(37.71%), Sirsi Local(37.99%) and Thirthalli Local resistance varities High in GR-3 (46.08 %) followed by Sirsi-1-13 (45.81 %) and BCMCO-02 (45.75 %).

23. Fruit fly- Bactocera cucurbitae Fruit fly maggots feed on the internal tissue cause premature fruit drop Yellowing and rotting of fruits Management Apply carbaryl 10%DP on the pits before sowing the seeds to destroy the pupae Cover the fruits with polythene or paper cover avoid laying eggs on fruit Breaking of soil to expose pupae and burying the soil in pit by dried leaves are also effective Using of banana fruit trap is effective

24. Aquaponics Futurist

25. THANK YOU