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Thu, Nov 28, 13 at 0:18
| I decided to grow cantaloupe this year, along with some watermelon that didnt make it. It was my first time so i told myself that if i got one melon id be satisfied. Well thats exactly what i got, just one....a very small one. Its about the size of a softball. If you live in texas, especially the houston area youll see that its been getting colder lately. Ill admit i planted the melons a little late and it took me too long to learn how to pollinate properly but i thought theyd be done by now. I want to try again in the upcomming spring and this time hopefully ill be better prepared. If you can give me any kind of help on the following, ill greatly appreciate it. 1) The melons, excuse me, MELON i grew is pretty small, i expected it to be not as big as the farm raised ones cus its grown organically but not the size of a softball. 2)When the melons did finally get properly pollinated and grew, i could only grow one per vine, then the plant would stop making female flowers, and the leaves that came after it were tiny, scrunched up, with tiny male flowers. 3) the watermelon would seem to be doing fine untill it got about baseball sized and it would turn brown and mushy on the ends and eventually die 4)also need to know the best time in texas to plant melons 5)There were ants everywhere in aliance with aphids, why? And how do i get rid of wasps that seem to love my vines 6)any other tips for future problems i may run in to will be greatly appreciated |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Melons like loose sandy soil and lots of room, and full sun. I till my patch every year and add whatever a soil analysis says that it needs. I direct seed around the 1st of May, and when the plants start to run, I give them a high nitrogen fertilizer, and feed them nothing else. Since i have limited space, I plant mine fairly close(4ft. centers), and keep the plants well watered, if there is no rain. I don't remove any flowers at all, nor do I prune the plants or remove any fruit. I leave them alone. Don't worry about the wasps, because they help with pollination. I don't hand pollinate. You should have ample, bumble bees, honey bees, and wasps to do the job for you. The ones that you've lost because they turned brown and mushy, were lost because they were poorly pollinated, and are naturally aborted by the plant. Once the melons have started to develop, and nature does not provide any rain, I water the plants at the base in the morning only. Watering melons in the afternoon will tend to cause them to split in the field. I also limit my selection of melons to ones that I personally like to eat and I know will grow well for me. I find that variety selection is one of the most important factors as to how successful you will be. |
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- Posted by fabaceae_native z6 NM (My Page) on Thu, Nov 28, 13 at 10:28
| I agree with rayrose... I just give mine good soil, lots of sun (no shade from trees or anything else), and plenty of water, then let them do their thing. I think your whole problem may be timing. Not only is late November a poor time for ripening melons, even in the South (you still have not much daylight this time of year), but that also means they flowered months later than most, thereby reducing pollination chances. Of course you can increase your chances of pollination, and success in general by planting more seed. And don't worry about size... taste is the most important! |
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