I love monkfruit sweetener. I think it’s way better than stevia. I’ve pondered trying to grow it here, but . . . well . . . here are my notes:
“Requires 80% humidity. It’s a perennial cucurbit. Wants full shade. Seeds take many months to germinate. Fruit takes 120-150 days to mature after being set. The plant needs 68-85°F for that entire period, with high humidity. It’s a diva and tends to die quickly if everything isn’t perfect. I just don’t think I have any chance to successfully grow it here.”
But is it possible some ecotypes are less finicky? Would it be possible for me to sow seeds in the ground in my greenhouse really early in the year, and get it to mature? Since it goes from seed to fruit in less than a year, it seems like an intriguing tropical perennial to train to behave like a summer annual in cooler climates.
But it would absolutely have to be able to handle 0% humidity, because . . . that’s my summers.
It would also be nice to know if their seeds can be dried and stored, which would make it much easier to obtain (and share) seeds. I suspect the seeds can be dried and still germinate, unlike many tropicals, because I’ve seen people saying they can take months to germinate. But that’s no guarantee, because some tropical seeds can take months to germinate and still need to stay constantly moist.
Does anybody have any thoughts?