Find out how to Develop Watermelon: 7 Ideas for a Candy Harvest
Craving candy, homegrown watermelon this summer time? Rising your personal watermelon is extremely rewarding. With sufficient area, heat, and time, you‘ll be able to take pleasure in juicy melons proper out of your backyard. Discover ways to develop watermelon, and also you’ll take pleasure in juicy, homegrown watermelon all summer time!
Article Index
Choose the Greatest Selection for Your Local weather
Put together the Excellent Planting Spot
Plant Watermelon Seeds Immediately in Heat Soil
Guarantee Blossoms are Pollinated
Present Optimum Situations for Massive, Candy Fruit
Defend Watermelon from Pests
Harvest Watermelon on the Excellent Time
7 Ideas for Find out how to Develop Watermelon
Watermelon wants loads of area and not less than 80 days of heat temperatures to develop effectively. In the event you can present these situations, learn to develop watermelon with the following pointers.
1. Choose the Greatest Selection for Your Local weather
Most varieties do effectively in heat climates. Some favorites embody Crimson Candy and Moon and Stars. Do this storage watermelon, Diné Origin Candy Storage Watermelon, which can preserve for months.
In scorching summer time climates just like the low desert of Arizona, select short-season varieties or varieties tailored to the warmth of the summer time, akin to Pueblo Watermelon, Desert King, and Hopi Yellow.
In cooler climates, select short-season varieties akin to Candy Siberian Watermelon, Sugar Child, or Jeremiah the Bullfrog Watermelon.
Smaller rising area? Select shorter-vining varieties akin to Bush Sugar Child or Cal Candy Bush.
2. Put together the Excellent Planting Spot
Select a web site for planting that receives plentiful daylight (not less than 6-8 hours). They like well-draining soil that’s barely acidic to impartial. Suppose sandy loam or loamy soil. Combine in some compost or aged manure. Enhance the soil additional with a balanced natural fertilizer. Verify your soil’s pH and nutrient ranges for those who’re unsure.
Watermelons want loads of room to unfold. Vines can develop as much as 20 ft (6 m) lengthy, so guarantee your backyard has sufficient area.
Develop two watermelon vegetation in a single 4 x 8 foot (1.2 x 2.4 m) mattress or one plant in a 4 x 4 (1.2 x 1.2 m) foot mattress. In the event you’re tight on area, you would possibly need to strive shorter-vining varieties and even develop them in containers or vertically. Rising vertically? Use melon cradles to assist the fruit.
If utilizing sq. foot gardening, plant shorter bush varieties, plant on the finish or nook of a mattress, and plan on one plant per 3-4 squares.
3. Plant Watermelon Seeds Immediately in Heat Soil
Watermelons do finest when sown immediately into heat soil (70°F/21°C) or larger. (Use a soil thermometer to test the temperature.) Plant 2-3 weeks after the final frost date. Within the low desert of Arizona, March is the very best time to plant.
Sow seeds about 1 inch (2.5 cm) deep and 4-5 ft (1.2-1.5 m) aside. Skinny to the strongest seedling as soon as they emerge. In the event you’re in a cooler local weather, begin seeds indoors about 4-6 weeks earlier than the final frost. Deal with the younger vegetation gently, preserve the soil moist, and keep away from disturbing the roots whenever you transplant.
4. Guarantee Blossoms are Pollinated
Watermelon vegetation want pollination from male to feminine flowers. In the event you don’t have sufficient pure pollinators, you would possibly have to hand-pollinate. Planting flowers on the ends of your beds might help appeal to bees and different pollinators.
5. Present Optimum Situations for Massive, Candy Fruit
Watermelons actually stay as much as their identify—they want a number of water! Preserve the soil persistently moist, particularly when the vegetation are setting fruit. Water deeply and let the highest couple of inches dry out between waterings. If possilbe, keep away from watering the final week earlier than harvest to forestall bland fruit and break up melons.
Begin with wealthy soil, and as soon as the vegetation start flowering, change to a flowering fertilzer. An excessive amount of nitrogen will result in plenty of leaves however fewer fruits. Mulch round your vegetation to maintain the soil moist and weed-free.
Let the vines develop naturally and keep away from pruning, because the leaves assist sweeten the fruit. For greater and extra flavorful melons, restrict the fruit to 1-2 per plant. Because the season winds down and frost approaches, take away smaller fruits to let the bigger ones totally mature.
6. Defend Watermelon from Pests
Preserve fruit off the bottom with cardboard or melon cradles to guard them from pests like beetles and tablet bugs. Verify leaves for squash bugs and their eggs. Mesh baggage and traps might help with rats. For powdery mildew, take away affected leaves and spray with a mixture of potassium bicarbonate powder and liquid castile cleaning soap. Be taught extra on this weblog put up.
7. Harvest Watermelon on the Excellent Time
Watermelons received’t ripen additional as soon as picked, so wait till they’re totally ripe. Lower the stem simply above the melon to reap. Realizing when to reap is vital. Search for these indicators:
The underside of the watermelon turns creamy yellow.
The tendril on the stem finish turns brown.
The rind modifications from a slick sheen to a boring look.
A deep, low-pitched thump when tapped.
For the very best taste, retailer entire watermelons at room temperature and eat them inside every week or two. They’ll final a bit longer within the fridge, however the style and texture may not be as nice. Juice any further watermelon and freeze it.
Keep in mind to offer watermelons area, heat, and time; you’ll be rewarded with a candy, juicy harvest. Do you’ve gotten questions or ideas of your personal? Drop a remark beneath.
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Craving candy, homegrown watermelon this summer time? Rising your personal watermelon is extremely rewarding. With sufficient area, heat, and time, you’ll be able to take pleasure in juicy melons proper out of your backyard. Discover ways to develop watermelon, and also you’ll take pleasure in juicy, homegrown watermelon all summer…