Arka Bahar
An ICAR-IIHR (Bengaluru) open-pollinated lauki with straight, medium-long, light green fruit of about 1 kg and no crooked neck. The national checklist lists it as tolerant to blossom end rot, with 40–45 t/ha, for Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.
Quick facts
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Zaid / summer
- Maturity period
- First pick ~60–65 days
- Expected yield
- 40–45 t/ha
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- Disease resistance
- Tolerant to blossom end rot; open-pollinated so seed can be saved
- Release
- Released by ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR), Bengaluru
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Arka Bahar is an open-pollinated bottle gourd from ICAR-IIHR, Bengaluru. The fruit is medium-long and straight, with no crooked neck, and light green and shiny when tender, weighing about 1 kg. The national checklist lists it as tolerant to blossom end rot and gives an average yield of 40–45 t/ha, for Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. It is one of the most planted lauki varieties in the southern and central states. Because it is open-pollinated, farmers can save their own seed.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Arka Bahar if you farm in the south or centre and want an open-pollinated lauki you can save seed from: straight, about 1 kg fruit, tolerant to blossom end rot and 40–45 t/ha in the checklist. Choose Kashi Bahar or Pusa Hybrid-3 if you will pay for hybrid seed to get more yield or better packing. Choose Pusa Naveen if you are in the north and want a straight lauki of 550 g. Choose Pusa Sandesh if your market buys round fruit.
Sowing & cultivation
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Straight, medium-long, light green fruit of about 1 kg with no crooked neck
- Tolerant to blossom end rot
- Open-pollinated, so seed can be saved
Things to consider
- The listed 40–45 t/ha is below Kashi Bahar (50–55 t/ha) and close to Pusa Hybrid-3 (about 42–47 t/ha)
- The melon fruit fly still needs a full trap-and-bait programme from first flower
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Karnataka
- Maharashtra
- Andhra Pradesh
- Madhya Pradesh
Tolerant of blossom end rot is not the same as safe
Arka Bahar is listed as tolerant to blossom end rot. In the field, the rot often follows uneven watering: a dry spell, then a heavy irrigation or rain.
Give light, regular irrigation in the fruiting weeks instead of long gaps and big watering. A mulch on the bed keeps moisture even.
Pick out any rotting young fruit at once and take it out of the field. It saves the next fruit on the same vine.
Can you keep your own planting material?
This is an open-pollinated variety, so seed from a healthy crop of your own can be sown again. Keep seed only from disease-free plants, dry it properly, store it cool and dry, and bring in fresh certified seed every three to four years so the variety does not drift.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Bottle Gourd (Lauki) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arka Baharthis page | An open-pollinated lauki with straight, 1 kg, light green fruit that tolerates blossom end rot | First pick ~60–65 days | 40–45 t/ha | Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh |
| Kashi Bahar | A high-yielding F1 lauki with long, straight, 780–850 g fruit for the eastern plains | First pick ~55–60 days | 50–55 t/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Bihar, Jharkhand |
| Punjab Komal | An early, CMV-tolerant PAU bottle gourd with oblong, light green fruit, about 200 q/acre | First fruit in about 70 days after sowing | About 200 q/acre (about 49 t/ha) | Punjab |
| Pusa Hybrid-3 | An F1 lauki built for easy packing and long-distance transport, recommended for all of India | First pick about 50–55 days | 42.5 t/ha in summer, 47 t/ha in the rainy season | Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Maharashtra |
| Pusa Naveen | An open-pollinated lauki with straight, 550 g fruit and no crooked neck, for two seasons | First pick ~60–65 days | 35–40 t/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra |
| Pusa Samridhi | An open-pollinated lauki with long, neckless fruit, listed 14–19% ahead of Pusa Naveen | First pick about 50–55 days | 27–31 t/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana |
| Pusa Sandesh | An open-pollinated round lauki of about 600 g, for kitchens and markets that buy the round type | First pick about 55–60 days in the rainy season, 60–65 days in summer | About 32 t/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi |
Tools for this crop
The numbers you need next: how much seed to buy, whether the lot germinates, what the fertilizer bill looks like and what Bottle Gourd (Lauki) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Bottle Gourd (Lauki) plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Germination CalculatorTest 100 seeds from the bag before sowing and see whether the lot is fit to sow.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Bottle Gourd (Lauki) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Bottle Gourd (Lauki) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Bottle Gourd (Lauki) in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Bottle Gourd (Lauki) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Bottle Gourd (Lauki) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
What is blossom end rot in lauki, and does Arka Bahar avoid it?
It is a rot that starts at the flower end of the young fruit. The national checklist lists Arka Bahar as tolerant to it, which means it copes better than most, not that it is immune. Even watering matters too, because swings between dry and wet make it worse.
What yield does Arka Bahar give?
The national checklist gives 40–45 t/ha. That is close to Pusa Hybrid-3 (about 42–47 t/ha) and below Kashi Bahar (50–55 t/ha), without the cost of buying hybrid seed each season.
Can I save seed from Arka Bahar?
Yes, it is open-pollinated. Leave a few of the best, true-to-type fruits on the vine until fully mature and dry, and take seed from them. Keep it away from other bottle gourd plots.
Which states is Arka Bahar suited to?
The checklist names Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. The summary above also lists Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Elsewhere, sow a small strip beside the variety you already use before planting a large area.
Has Arka Bahar been used to breed other lauki varieties?
Yes. The checklist says TNAU's Bottle gourd Hybrid CO 1 was made by crossing NDBG 121 with Arka Bahar. That hybrid suits bower cultivation and is listed at 80 t/ha for Tamil Nadu.
Sourced from: Checklist of Commercial Varieties of Vegetables (capsicum, carrot, cucumber, bottle gourd, bitter gourd) — TNAU Agritech national bulletin. editorial policy.