I've always grown watermelon, but this year I decided to grow muskmelon. Watermelon have that vine that crawls up, and turn yellow.
Not sure how to tell if these muskmelon (cantaloupe) are ready for harvest.
Any advice?
- Lindsaylew82
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In my experience, they need to have something underneath them, like a plastic plate or a brick or something like that, otherwise, they will get bored into from beneath. I know that wasn't the original question, but I think it's important. I was picking ripe melons only to find them ruined from the bottom.
I have always picked them once they begin to turn yellow orange on the outside, and you can smell the fragrance of melon. Oh it's a glorious smell! They usually slip from the vine when they're ripe, which means that they separate with very little effort.
I have always picked them once they begin to turn yellow orange on the outside, and you can smell the fragrance of melon. Oh it's a glorious smell! They usually slip from the vine when they're ripe, which means that they separate with very little effort.
- KitchenGardener
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- Lindsaylew82
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Mine were sittin upon pine straw. I would pop a solo plate under there, just in case. I have used paper plates, but if you don't use several plates, they just chew right on through them into your melon. The plastic solo plate in the smaller size work really well, and they can be reused many times!
I hope they don't crack with all that rain!
I hope they don't crack with all that rain!
- jal_ut
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Just give the stem a slight push, when ready it will pop right off. As others have mentioned the color and smell are good indicators too.
My melon patch is a disaster this season. A late frost killed the early plantings, so starting over a month late, everything is running late. Not sure if I will even get a harvest. All we need is an early frost.
My melon patch is a disaster this season. A late frost killed the early plantings, so starting over a month late, everything is running late. Not sure if I will even get a harvest. All we need is an early frost.
So I cut one open, not ripe yet. They are at about 70 days. Still hard, and attached to vine...but vines and tendrils are starting to dry out. Is that good???? Is that normal????jal_ut wrote:Yellowish and softish? Sounds ready to me. You are going to have to decide.
muskmelon vs cantaloupe? Far as I know they are the same thing: Cucumus melo. Of course there are a lot of varieties.
- Lindsaylew82
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