Meet our first burgundy okras!
I was recently very pleased to connect with another gardener in Singapore who is as interested as I am in growing edible plants. While I’ve been growing local varieties of fruits and vegetables, Novice Gardener has been much more adventurous and has been growing different varieties of some of the same vegetables. After exchanging seeds with each other, we’ve expanded each others’ repertoire of plants, and now I have – of all things – burgundy okra plants growing in the garden!
I decided to experiment with a pair of plants, to start with. By all appearances, they looked like regular okra plants. The only exception was that the stems and main leaf veins were a nice, deep red colour.
They remind me of roselle plants, actually, with the red stems and lobed green leaves.
Burgundy okra flower buds (and a juvenile fruit) on the left, regular green okra buds on the right.
When burgundy-coloured flower buds started forming, I couldn’t wait to see how the flowers would differ from regular green okra plants. Yes, I know I could have looked that up online, but where’s the adventure in that? 
Interestingly to me, the flowers didn’t differ that much at all, with the exception of the shade of colour of the base of the petals and stigma – the burgundy okra is more red while the regular okra is more purple.
Burgundy okra flower on the left, regular green okra flower on the right. Notice the differences in the colours?
The okra fruits start off green, but soon take on the rich burgundy shade as they mature. Compared to my local green okra fruits, these were narrower, with a flared base at the stem. I was so fascinated watching the first two fruits grow that I plucked them a little too late. My guide to harvesting okras is to test the tip of the fruit – once it starts feeling a little stiff, I know it’s almost too late to take them for eating. Unfortunately, these first two burgundy okras weren’t fit to eat (I tried), so I know I’ll have to harvest them sooner the next time.
The good news is, the second plant has yet to reach maturity, so between the pair of plants, we should continue to get a nice supply of red okras for a while more – and I have more seeds yet to sow… 
Thanks, Novice G, for the new, conversation-piece okra plants!
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If you cook any red/burgundy okras, they turn green. LOL.
I admire the determination of these gardeners. Iregret that I cannot buy any reliable seeds where in live in Vietnam, and would like somebody to send me some for trials here, please.
So glad that your burgundy okras are fruiting well! In my experience, these can grow a bit longer than the green okras before harvest – the green ones tend to get fibrous longer than 5 inches, whereas I can get away with harvesting burgundy ones when they are about 7 inches.
Haha, yes, Sky, I was pre-warned that the okra would turn green when cooked. They’re so interesting when they’re on the plants, though!
Mike, I have emailed you at the address you submitted.
NoviceG, these okras develop really fast! They’re by far the longest variety of okra I’ve grown. The skin is more prickly and leathery, though, which is why I want to harvest them sooner, when they’re (I presume) more tender. Thanks again for the seeds!