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South Carolina

last year I had to but my melons in a cooler for about 25 days before the fair. If you are growing for a date lets say Oct 1 would you start the plant real early and let them grow alot before you pick a melon and polinated and then let the melon grow for about 90 days. Or is it best to start the plants later and pick some of the first melons that come on the vines? Thanks Tom

2/9/2010 1:20:47 PM

formerly RGG

If you start the plants later they might not grow as large and you also might not have a full ninety days post polination for the selected melon to grow as large as possible. I like to start my plants as early as possible and the weather be warm enough for them to grow properly. The limiting factor seems to be that Carolina Cross plants like a LOT of heat.The northern growers certainly have my sympathy.

2/9/2010 7:58:35 PM

Garner, NC

Hey Tom, Last year I planted my melons for a Oct. date and what happened was they never reach maturity. There is a grower here in town that took a 203lb to a fair in July, then kept his melon in the garage and took it to another fair in late Oct. and it was fine. So I learned like Tennesse Dreamer said, plant early, a take advantage of the long days and the heat. Thats atleast my plan this year. Best of luck this year.

2/10/2010 9:14:12 AM

DeWitt, Iowa

how long can they grow inside? i dont want to waste valuble summer days with their slow start, i want them running by then.

2/10/2010 9:49:09 AM

South Carolina

How old do you think the plant needs to be before you start looking for a melon to polinate and keep? I saw video on youtube of Ivan Bright farm and the plants looked alot more healthy and alot more vine than mine last year.I am just looking ahead and thinking of what will help can not do much now but think . Thanks Tom

2/10/2010 10:08:39 AM

Cameron

Ontario grower Bill Donkers starts his seeds directly into the soil in late May or early June, depending on the weather. His PB is 239# (Canadian Record).

Phil

2/10/2010 10:28:25 AM

formerly RGG

If you are growing in a window sill then a Carolina Cross won't last long at all inside. However, if you use grow lights then you can raise substantial size plants inside. I think MMM's plants are blooming size when he sets them out. He needs that advantage to be successful up in Minnesota. You just have to be very careful not to disturb the roots when transplanting one that big. If you do disturb the roots much you are liable to lose the plant or stunt it severely. Watermelon plants do not take kindly to having their roots disturbed and so do not transplant well.

2/10/2010 10:36:17 AM

formerly RGG

Pick a early melon to set but not the first one. Let several set on & then pick one that has a good shape and is growing at a good pace.I think one key to growing a giant is having a large plant very early in the season. This takes some knowledge, skill, dedication, equipment, luck, etc.

2/10/2010 10:43:09 AM

Rochester, Minnesota

I have a seriously hard time believing that you can put a seed in the ground in late May early June and even bring a melon to ripeness, well enough produce a competition sized melon. I start my plants in late March indoors to set out as vining plants in late May. Even pumpkin growers generally start plants indoors (usually in April to set out in May, and that's a northern plant.

2/11/2010 3:52:27 PM

Rochester, Minnesota

On the comment about storing a melon. I recommend making friends with your local grocery store produce manager to see if you can store your melon under wraps in one of their walk in produce storage refrigerators.

2/11/2010 3:54:06 PM

formerly RGG

The grocerey store storage idea is a pretty good one. However, care of the melon is out of your control & things can & do sometimes go wrong. Last year I kept my 181 at a local Krogers for a couple of weeks and it got banged up. It was still OK for competition but just barely so & was going bad by the time the Tennessee Valley fair ended. So take this idea with the knowledge that things are out of your control and there is no guarantee of a perfect outcome. I would expect there would be a good outcome most of the time though.

2/11/2010 6:10:25 PM

Lexington,IN

I'm sure Mr. Donkers uses mini greenhouses or some sort of cold frame in early part of the season. Maybe even heat cable in his soil too. Bill Edwards in MI does also. His seeds pop in the incubator About May 7th. and go straight in the ground, in heated greenhouses. Wish I could afford to go that route. Where I'm at you can pollinate by July 12 or so and get big melons, so long as mother nature cooperates. I usually put out two week old plants about May 20th. here, maybe I'll try a few plants two weeks earlier and see what happens.

2/11/2010 9:21:42 PM

formerly RGG

Good idea Dewight, you can't improve much if you're not willing to experiment a little bit.

2/11/2010 10:50:53 PM

Boise City, Oklahoma, USA

A temporary 6x8' rebar, pvc, duct tape, and sheet plastic hoop can be had for about $20 and 20 min time... the heat cable is what costs but that becomes the best investment you can make the first season. They are not bad to run.

You can stuff the thing with 2 liter soda bottles 3/4 full and recapped (water) for solar heat storage, making it a sort of huge wallOwater... I've done both for pumpkins, to get a watermelon PERIOD this year I'm going to try giving one the treatment I give the AG's to get the vine started.

Consider trying it Dewight.

2/12/2010 5:22:41 AM

Lexington,IN

That's true TD, I guess all great discoveries start as experiments. I don't think I'll have to use any type of extra heating here, again depends on Mother nature. I have removeable cold frames I use early on, basically to keep the wind off them. They are open top, maybe I'll just cover them and use as a mini greenhouse. I always use black plastic to warm the soil where the melons will be planted, 4' X 4' area. I get the plastic down as soon as I can, after planting holes are doctored up. I leave the plastic down until it stays in the 70's at night. If the sun is hitting directly on the plastic and heating the soil too much I'll remove it. If it's shaded by vines and leaves and not heating the soil up too much I just leave it.

2/12/2010 9:41:54 AM