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Sugar Hill , Georgia

Looks like I'm having low pollination success rates , I have very few bees so I've taken to hand pollinating but still my success rate is only about 45% , I have noticed that the larger ovaries from the beg honing tend to survive the most , which I guess is a given , I am doing the direct pollination method rather than a brush around 9-10 in the morning , any words of advice

5/29/2012 11:24:51 PM

Rochester, Minnesota

Yes, if the weather for the day of pollination is above 75 degrees, then I recommend putting a container of ice near the pollinated flower and then put a remay blanket or some sort of cover over the them to keep the flower cool. It seems that cooler weather will cause the flower to uptake the pollen.

Every flower I pollinated by this method last year took.

5/30/2012 9:27:51 AM

Muddy Waters

Is the blossom end glowing when you pollinate,look at the blossom early in the day when it changes to a glow like appearance.shes ready.

5/30/2012 10:10:45 AM

Sugar Hill , Georgia

How much growth should I get per day on the melon once it pollinates , it seems to be very slow for now but I noticed most of the foliage around the melon is still developing so I'm thinking about hitting it with a balanced fertilizer and doing some thinning where neccesarry

5/30/2012 11:31:02 AM

Muddy Waters

Be carefull pushing them with ferts, if your soil is up to par.Just water is good.You can slow them down with to much fertility.The melon will turn black in a few days if not pollinated.Dont worry about it stealing juice from another if you have 50 feet of vine or more it will support 2 fruit easy.

5/30/2012 1:07:03 PM

Valencia Spain

how many feet do the top growers pollinate at

6/2/2012 3:44:13 PM

Muddy Waters

Most of them pollinate 5 feet or more out.they like to be 7- 10 feet about average.But hey anythings possible try something different.Good Luck!

6/2/2012 11:08:28 PM