I do better with transplants. Watermelons need wide amending if soils need amending. The roots mirror the vines...long and shallow.

I raised ali Baba once, but they had no taste or sweetness...yes, I have grown some really great melons. I wasn't impressed by Moon and Stars. Orange Glo is the healthiest grower I have grown. Once a single plant made 222 pounds of melons. The texture and taste ranges from grainy to pretty good.

Malformed melons are from lack of full pollination. All seeds need pollination not just some in order to get a fully formed melon. Each seeds needs a pollen grain that germinates and sends a pollen tube down to the ovary. Too little pollination and the fruit is malformed because it's the pollinated seed that stimulates flesh development.

Thanks for replies. Regarding the lack of full pollination, do you recommend hand pollinating? Is this problem more widespread with watermelons? I'm asking because all other fruits in my garden, including many heirloom musk/honeydew melons (which are in the same rows as the watermelons), are fully formed and reach full size.

Does the lack of pollination have any affect on the size the melon reaches? Besides being misshapen, they are about 1/5 the size they should be by now.

Thanks again.

the weed is rampant in the photo. control them or your crop will suffer.

Watermelons like loose soil, and confining the roots to a hole surrounded by heavy clay will yield poor results. Weekly feeding is not necessary, and you've got too many weeds. Orangeglo is a long season melon and depending on when you planted it, may not be suitable for you.

Thanks for replies. Regarding the lack of full pollination, do you recommend hand pollinating? Is this problem more widespread with watermelons? I'm asking because all other fruits in my garden, including many heirloom musk/honeydew melons (which are in the same rows as the watermelons), are fully formed and reach full size.

Does the lack of pollination have any affect on the size the melon reaches? Besides being misshapen, they are about 1/5 the size they should be by now.

Thanks again.

Your vines aren't vigorous enough to support big melons. You may not need weekly fertilizer but you need enough to grow big vines. They also need enough water. It sounds like your soil may not be good for melons. You might need a large raised bed of fertile soil. Agree that a hole in clay soil isn't best. If the clay drains slowly melons won't do well.

To grow big melons your vines need to look like this.

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My melons look just as runty as yours! I, too, have clay soil and my melon management was similar. I have two moon & stars melons that have remained the size of my fist for over a month.

...I'm thinking that I might give up on melons unless I can provide it with better soil.