The sopropo is also called balsamic pear and bitter gourd and originates from Asia. This very bitter, exotic fruit looks much like a small, fat cucumber and apparently tastes best when picked young and green. The mature fruit is golden yellow to orange in colour and is often used for decoration. Use the Sopropo in exotic dishes, stir-fry dishes, hollowed out and stuffed with e.g. rice or minced meat and various vegetables. This plant needs support and in our European climate is best grown in a greenhouse as it requires a lot of heat. Not hardy annual. Height: 180 - 300 cm.
Soak: 24 hours
Indoor sowing: April - June
Germination: 2 - 7 days
Germination temp.: 22-25°C
Sowing depth: 1 - 1¼ cm
Plant distance: 15-30 cm
Plant position: sunny and sheltered (greenhouse or hothouse)
Days till harvest: 60 - 70
Soak about 24 hours before sowing in tepid water. Sow indoors from April on. Keep warm and keep the soil temperature at about 20 °C and very even to ensure a quick and good germination. Sow in seperate pots 1 or 2 seeds each. Cover with a layer of moist soil. Keep moist, but not to wet to prevent the seeds from rotting. Cover the pots with clingfilm to retain the moisture. Remove the clingfilm when the seedlings emerge.
Tranplant the seedlings in a greenhouse or hothouse after about 1 month. Give them a lot of light, warmth and a high air humidity to stimulate the grow and fruit setting of the plants. Fertilize the female flowers by hand to get fruits. These plants need a lot of feeding to grow. Fertilize each week when the fruits starting to grow a lot of water mixed with a liquid feed. Support the plants. Protect the plants against snails, slugs, birds and other pests. Give water on the ground and not on the plants to prevent rotting. This subtropical plant needs a lot of warmth, sunshine and humidity to trive. Harvest the fruits when they're young, tender and light green. The old, ripe fruits have a really bitter flavour. Cut the fruits with a knife from the plants.
