These methods are not 100% reliable and can give you an overripe melon as often as just right with some varieties. One other method and among the most reliable is to feel of the melon and see if it feels lumpy/bumpy when you rub your hand over it. A green melon will never have the lumpy/bumpy feel of a ripe melon. As with all things in life, there are exceptions, Dixielee is a commercially selected melon that does not develop the bumpy surface.

DarJones

Dar, And I found out that the Dixielee is the fastest over-ripening melon out there. You make a good point about the bumpy/ridgy surface of ripe melons. Over-ripe melons tend to be too soft while under-ripe melons are hard and non-faded.

For the melon varieties I listed they are all pretty easy to tell when overripe. Knock on them with your knuckles, if it is dull sounding it most likely is overripe. If it has a dead tendril and it has a sharp sound when knocked, it is probably a good one. Again, I am referring to the varieties I've listed. We grew two heirloom watermelon last year which proved to be more difficult to tell when ripe because the tendril method wasn't accurate - it was about a week after it died that it had some good flavor.
Otherwise, dead tendril and thumping have been very accurate for us - I say this with "hundreds and hundreds of harvested quality watermelons" worth of experience. :)

In a home garden setting I can watch them grow and notice when they cease growing. After they stop growing the tendril will shortly turn yellow and then brown in 4 days. I like to let them further sweeten 7 to 10 days. The Dixielee is one that needs picking earlier, but I have raised dozens of varieties and almost all others keep [hold] well.

Well, this method did NOT work for us. Tendril was brown for over 2 weeks - inside was light pink around the edges, white in the middle. NOT ripe. Wasted a perfectly good melon. Will wait at least 2-3 weeks before trying the next melon with a brown tendril.

gg, you didn't name the variety. There are soil conditions that can result in melons that do not ripen properly. Also, an excess of nitrogen will cause melons to have huge white splotches inside.

Am I the only one who smells the outside of the melon to check ripeness? Works better on other melons, but I do it with watermelons too:).

Nila, If you can smell a ripe watermelon, i'd like to employ you to help me find truffles. :)

I have a pretty good honker and while I can easily smell muskmelons when they're ripe, I can't do it with honeydew and certainly not with watermelon, even the thin rind ones.

-Mark

The surest way to tell if a watermelon is ripe or not is to use a knife and cut it in half. Grin !

Well, there is ripe and over-ripe too. Course, I would much rather habve one that is a bit over-ripe and sweet than an under-ripe one.

I raised a couple old varieties last year [Klondike Striped Blue Ribbon and Orangeglo]. These two will very quickly be soft inside. Even then, nothing beats the sweetness and taste of that Klondike...but you sacrifice crispness.

I raise mostly newer Hybrids and they keep [hold] well. My favorites are Raspa and Sangria.

Another sign to look for on the bottom yellow area are very tiny specks of black dots clustered together. These are mildew spots no bigger than a period at end of a sentence and they won't rub off like specks of soil. These black dots form when the melons has been sitting for a long time, long enough to be ripe if not over ripe. Also when checking the tendril observe the leafs closest to the melon on the vine. If the leaves look vibrant and healthy then it may be too early, if the leaves are somewhat ragged looking then it's may be ripe, it's a good confirmation combo with the brown tendril. The shine of a new melon fades to dull when ripe too and the afore mentioned lumpiness on large melons is a winner.

Hi Wayne, it's been a while, thanks again for the Raspa melon tip several years ago, they have served me well with bountiful sweetness. But alas they are too Big for me now and I need your sound advice for a smaller sweet melon version. Any favs you could recommend? Thx again.

vgkg, Greetings. I haven't found much I liked in small melons and I have never grown the seedless personal melon. Years ago I had an occasional really good Fordhook Hybrid. The Yellow Doll is good and I had a superb Cooperstown seedless last year...15-22 pounds.

If you have an iPhone, get the Melon Meter App. If you don't have an iPhone, get one. :-)

Jim

Here is a link that might be useful: Melon Meter App

Deleting duplicate post.

Here is a link that might be useful: Melon Meter App

This post was edited by jimster on Wed, Aug 7, 13 at 13:32

Thanks Wayne, the coopertown seedless sounds good, and yellow doll has been one of my favs for years now. Too bad the smallish melons have a shorter shelf life than the Big Boys, at least that's been the case here. Crimson Sweet & Lanthum sugar baby types do grow well here so I may opt for a mid size as bernadette mentioned and pick em' at their peak. Really love the Big Raspas....maybe just one plant...I can feel that hernia already :)