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Seasons
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Cantaloupe, honeydews and watermelons are all
grown the same way. They like a well-composted, sandy soil and
like it hot! It takes 80-100 frost free days to grow a watermelon
from seed. If you live in an area that is shorter than this you
will definitely want to start your seeds ahead of time or purchase
started plants. Cool temperatures and not enough sun will prevent
the "sugar" from developing sweet fruit.
Planting:
Plant seeds or transplants 1-1/2 -2 ft. apart in rows 6-8'
apart. Seeds should be sowed 1 inch deep. Work 1/2 cup bone
meal to each plant. Mulching with black plastic is very helpful to
watermelon. It helps to control the weeds and keeps the soil moist
and warm.
Fertilizing:
Watermelons require a lot of nutrients to grow large, juicy
fruit. Be sure to work compost or cow manure into the soil when
planting. When the fruits have formed, side-dress with 1/2 cup
5-10-10 for every 4 or 5 plants. In 4 weeks weeks you will want to
side-dress again. If you use plastic, fertilize with a liquid
fertilizer such as manure tea or fish emulsion. One thing to remember is
that watermelons like low nitrogen and high phosphorus.
Harvesting:
Allow the melons to fully ripen on the vine. It is in the last few
days that the melon becomes sweet. A ripe melon will develop a
crack at the point of attachment to the stem. Gently lift up the
melon and it will break from the vine. A ripe melons underside
will turn from white or green to yellow and the vine tendrils nearest
the melon will turn brown and dry. The skin on a ripe melon turns
dull and it is difficult to penetrate the skin with your fingernail.
Experienced gardeners can thump a melon with their knuckles and listen
for the telltale hollow sound.
It is crucial to remove the watermelon as soon as it is ripe. A
ripe melon will being to rot very quickly in the hot summer sun.
One thing to avoid in crop rotation is planting watermelons after
cucumbers, pumpkins or squash as they are susceptible to the same
diseases and insects.
Melons should also be planted far enough away from cucumbers
and winter squash so that their vines can not intertwine. The
melons will become bitter if their blossoms are pollinated by either of
these plants. |
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Varieties
Charleston Grey has large oblong fruits that weigh
up to 25 lbs and have a light gray-green rind with contrasting veins. The
flesh is bright red, crisp and sweet. Disease resistant plants produce
vigorous vines providing lots of sunburn protection. Best in areas with
plenty of warm weather. 85-90 days to maturity.
The blocky oval fruits of Crimson Sweet have dark
green stripes and weigh up to 30 lbs. The flesh is bright red, firm, and
very sweet. Disease resistant plants produce vigorous vines providing lots
of sunburn protection. Best in areas with plenty of warm weather. 80-90
days to maturity.
The fruits of Florida Giant are oval-round,
weigh up to 30 pounds, and have a dark green rind with a bluish cast. The
flesh is bright red, firm and very sweet. Vigorous vines provides lots of
sunburn protection. Best in areas with plenty of warm weather. 90-95
days to maturity.
The large oval fruits of Jubilee average 35 pounds
and have a light green rind with pronounced dark stripes. The scarlet
flesh is firm and very sweet. Plants produce vigorous vines providing lots
of sunburn protection. Best in areas with plenty of warm weather. 80-90
days to maturity.
Congo
The oval fruits of Dixie Queen weigh up to 25 lbs and have a light
green rind with pronounced dark stripes. The scarlet flesh is firm and
very sweet. Plants produce vigorous vines providing lots of sunburn
protection. Best in areas with plenty of warm weather. 80-90 days to
maturity
Keckley's Sweet are an oval-round fruit that weigh
up to 30 lbs and have a dark green rind with a bluish cast. The flesh is
bright red, firm and sweet. Vigorous vines provide lots of sunburn
protection. Best in areas with plenty of warm weather. 90-95 days.
Stone Mountain is a delicious, early maturing, small fruited
"icebox" melon developed specifically for home gardens. Flesh is
sweet and fine textured with few seeds. Vines are short, requiring less
space than big fruited varieties. 60-80 days maturity.
Sugar Baby is a delicious, small fruited
"icebox" melon developed specially for home gardens. Fruits grow
to 8" across, and weigh about 10 pounds. The flesh is bright red,
fine grained and very flavorful. Plants are small vines producing early
enough for short season areas. 75-80 days to maturity.
You just can't beat the flavor of Yellow Doll.. They
grow best where space is plentiful, weather is warm, and there is an ample
supply of water. 80-100 days to maturity.
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®
Hertzler
Farm
and Feed Inc.
