Japanese snake gourd seeds (Trichosanthes pilosa)

Japanese snake gourd seeds (Trichosanthes pilosa)

Price for Package of 5 seeds.

A climbing plant in the pumpkin family with thin shoots, lobed leaves, and white flowers with frilly edges, followed by round, bright red fruits that hold seeds coated in slimy black mucus. Trichosanthes pilosa is widespread from the Himalayas to tropical eastern Asia to 1300 m. The roasted seeds are a popular snack in parts of Asia.

Japanese snake gourd is a perennial, climbing plant producing stems that can sprawl over the ground or climb into other plants for support, attaching themselves by means of tendrils.
The plant is cultivated, especially in China, for its edible fruit and root, and also for traditional medicinal purposes

Cultivation Details
Requires rich well-drained soil and plenty of moisture in the growing season.

Edible Uses
An edible starch is obtained from the root.
The immature fruit is preserved in salt. The mature fruit is about 7cm long.

Medicinal
Yields the protein hetero-trichosanthin, with 1.7 times the abortifacient activity of trichosanthin from the related species T. Kirilowii.

Diuretic
The root is anodyne, antiphlogistic, blood purifier, depurative, febrifuge, and resolvent. It is used as a poultice or made into a decoction to treat abscesses, boils, fevers, sore throats, etc.
The fruit is used to treat coughs, diabetes, jaundice, etc.

Other Uses
The dried fruit is rich in saponins and is used as a soap substitute.
An industrial starch is obtained from the root.

Propagation
Seed - sow March in pots in a warm greenhouse in rich soil. Sow 2 - 3 seeds per pot and thin to the strongest plant. Grow them on fast and plant out after the last expected frosts. Give some protection, such as a frame or cloche, until the plants are growing away well.