OK.. I'm off to a bad start again...
Let me fill you in.
LAST year I had 40 or more ,elons come in,.. NONE of them were fit to eat. (I have a picture posted of what they ALL looked like.)
They got to be 40 or 50 pounds (they were black diamonds). The litte tendril would die, and I cut off the melon. The 'thump' sounded right, and when I cut the melon it looked like the pic posted. NEVER all season got a melon fit to eat. I even started leaving the melons on the vine longer and longer after the tendril died (up to going past two weeks)
All the results were the same.
They were well fertilized, and well watered. The rest of my garden did excellent (and even the melons grew vines over 50 feet long.)
SO THIS year I cut my first melon. The pic below is this years pic.
https://s158.photobucket.com/albums/t93/pickupguy07/?action=view¤t=Melon.jpg
The tendril had been dead for over a week, and the melon weighed 35#.
I have NO idea why my melons don't do any better.
Would any of you be able to tell me what is going wrong. At first thought you'd think "they just haven't gotten completely ripe". But when the tendril dies, and you leave it for two weeks past that (you'd think it would be starting to rot by then).
Dad lived on a farm as a child, and they planted huge fields full of melons year after year. He said he's never saw anything like this.
I hope someone can help me. I have been trying two years now, and have YET to grow a melon fit to eat.[/img]
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pickupguy07
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- Location: GA
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pickupguy07
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- Posts: 253
- Joined: Thu May 12, 2011 7:06 pm
- Location: GA
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Smallgardener
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- Location: SW Kansas
I have never seen anything like that. It looks like it is not ripe for some reason. Could not find a disease that looks like that. Could it be weather related. My melons last year matured but were all mushy.
Could it be nurtrient related. Can you do a tissue sample and a soil sample. You certainly have experience so I should rule out rookie mistake.
Good Luck
Could it be nurtrient related. Can you do a tissue sample and a soil sample. You certainly have experience so I should rule out rookie mistake.
Good Luck
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pickupguy07
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- Joined: Thu May 12, 2011 7:06 pm
- Location: GA
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pickupguy07
- Senior Member
- Posts: 253
- Joined: Thu May 12, 2011 7:06 pm
- Location: GA
Smallgardener wrote:I have never seen anything like that. It looks like it is not ripe for some reason. Could not find a disease that looks like that. Could it be weather related. My melons last year matured but were all mushy.
Could it be nutrient related. Can you do a tissue sample and a soil sample. You certainly have experience so I should rule out rookie mistake.
Good Luck
Thanks for the input. I'm like you just at first glance, looks like it never got ripe. If I remember right melons take about 100 days to mature - and some last year I left 3 weeks past that time period ( Still that doesn't mean there were ripe - just throwing that out there.)
I'm like you, I don't think it was any type disease, and even though it was hot both last year and this they were well watered. None of them I cut were mushy, (except one that I finally let stay out LONG long after the tendril died, and it has starts to rot) All the others were firm.
I also planted the melons in two different spots these two year (for the most part to keep all those vines out of my garden)
Just to recover... that I understanding everything right, and growing the right.
I planted the seeds on schedule (and even planted them by the right 'signs". Dad swears by that... I don't know, but I went along with him anyway.
Nothing much to do really. I fertilized them when I planted then, and I fertilized them some more when they started putting on blooms. I keep the watered regular.
If they aren't ripe, anyone think they need more fertilizer to boost them to finish up..??? The ground was well tilled up when we started, and I worked in a good bit of compost, mixed with seasoned chicken manure.
I guess whats most confusing is that EVERY thing I am growing is doing GREAT. Tomatoes out the butt, tons of cucumbers, more squash that I can begin to eat... Potatoes have stalks 5 feet tall,.. but they are still green, and show no signs for turning brown getting ready to harvest. Just everything seems to growing awesome.... even the melons are growing awesome (just never get one that is grown correctly.
These are Black Diamond variety, so it's not unusual for them to grow 40+ pounds. Maybe next season I need to try a different brand like sugar babys..??
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Smallgardener
- Senior Member
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- Joined: Mon Jul 02, 2012 1:18 pm
- Location: SW Kansas
Here is what I understand.
Nitrogen slows the maturity process.
Phosphorus speed up the maturity process.
As long as the nutrients are out there in the right proportions there should not be a problem.
For example. Over phophorus availability can speed up a wheat plant soo much that you can risk it being too far along in the spring and risk spring freeze injury.
Is there any way to lacate a commercial watermelon grower and question them, or send the pics off to a state ag college or extension agent.
Nitrogen slows the maturity process.
Phosphorus speed up the maturity process.
As long as the nutrients are out there in the right proportions there should not be a problem.
For example. Over phophorus availability can speed up a wheat plant soo much that you can risk it being too far along in the spring and risk spring freeze injury.
Is there any way to lacate a commercial watermelon grower and question them, or send the pics off to a state ag college or extension agent.