Momordica cochinchinensis (Gac Fruit)

7 (15)m, Gac Fruit is a vigorously growing perennial vine within the cucumber family (Cucurbitaceae) and native of South Asia. Most plants are dioeceous, i.e. plants are either male or female. Very rarely, certain plants may be monoecious with both sexes on the same plant. With time Momordica cochinchinensis makes a massive, caudex-like stem and fast growing vines with lage pale yellow flowers, followed by showy, pomelo-sized, ovoid, bright orange fruits on female plants upon a successful pollination. Male and female flowers can be distinguished easily, as female flowers will already bear a tiny fruit below their petals. Flowers are open for some 12 h, and female flowers should be hand pollinated as soon as they are fully open. Fruits contain large brownish-black seeds which are covered with a dark red flesh. Mature fruits show the highest levels of lycopene in all fruits (up to 70 times the amount of lycopene in tomatoes) and up to 10 times the amount of beta-carotene in carots. Traditionally unripe one to two week old fruits are cooked and added to various Asian rice dishes and Indian curries. From ripe fruits the seeds with the atttached red flesh are cooked in rice dishes to give them an intense orange color. For any humus rich, well drained soil in a sunny spot throughout the year. Plants require a climbing add. In winter keep dryer and at a minimum of some 15°C. Seeds are extremely scarce and have the size of between a 20 Cent to an 1 Euro coin! Unlike what some other vendors may tell you, the sex of the later plant is not determined by the shape and the size of the seed. Germination in this species is notoriously slow, seeds may rest in the soil for 12 months and more before they start to germinate. As a matter of fact, we had several seeds in our originally batch collected from Thailand which did no germinate until their third year. Thus be patient! Offered seeds are from our own plants cultivated on the Canary islands, Spain. And unlike seeds which are imported from abroad and which may have lost viability due to an improper storage, our seeds are fully viable. VI-VIII.
3 large seeds per package.