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Ut

Has anyone tried pruning to one vine with the scondaries only like a kin? I'm trying it so I hope it's not a disaster.

6/28/2012 5:50:25 PM

Muddy Waters

Never tried it, Not a bad idea

6/28/2012 6:23:28 PM

Rochester, Minnesota

Give it a try and add your knowledge to the group.

6/29/2012 11:07:02 AM

Ut

Will do. I can't believe no one has tried it!? Most of you came into melons via the AG which they are quite confidant can support one fruit per main. Being a cucurbit I don’t see how a melon would be any different. I hope that it will allow me to better manage the bugs, disease, energy wasted on vegetative growth, culls etc… I also hope more root per leaf surface area will help with moisture and nutrients. It might also make light supplementation easier for you TD, because there will not be very much area to light. I am less experienced than most of you but I suppose I will get some idea of how it is working if I am able to match or surpass my average daily weight gains from last year’s charts. It would be better to do several plants spagettit style/Christmas tree style side by side in the same season/same soil/same water, but I’m not a real scientist, not yet:) I’ll let you know how it goes. I am pruning everything on the first 8-12 inches from the stump and fanning out a Christmas tree form there. Call me crazy, but all melon growers are a little nutty right?

6/29/2012 2:02:46 PM

Ut

Were most of you melon growers kin growers first? I wasn't but I'm studying kins since they seem to know more about them. I'm trying kins for my first time this year.

6/29/2012 2:25:53 PM

sevierville, Tn

I think its a good idea, i was going to try it but never got around to doing it. Good luck.

6/29/2012 4:04:47 PM

Muddy Waters

I started melons & kins the same year 1996.

6/29/2012 9:40:45 PM

Western NY

http://www.bigpumpkins.com/Diary/DiaryViewOne.asp?eid=139053

6/29/2012 9:59:58 PM

Buffalo, New York

not a bad idea, my plant is starting to look like a big pile of spaghetti here.

6/30/2012 9:44:18 AM

Ut

Okay then I have a scary idea for one or two of you big-hitters. If you have a plant you can afford to test, then once you get a steady weight gain on your melon, lop off everything but that vine from the stump and see if your weight gain changes on that melon. I dare you in the name of science:)

7/1/2012 12:58:13 AM

Muddy Waters

I can tell you this it wont increase the growth,It may very well drop though.whatever you do I would go the other direction & phase the plant into the shape you want.Ask Frank Mudd about cutting a lot of vines off a plant.He said the melon stopped growing.I have cut many kins & melons off plants to see no increase in the others on the plant.I have seen radical cutting of plants do nothing but slow things down.Give it a try,theres always an exception to every rule.

7/1/2012 5:20:06 AM

formerly RGG

How many plants are you growing this year Kyle ?

7/1/2012 10:13:09 AM

Reelfoot Lake, Tennessee

With curcubits, does the absorption rate of nutrients diminish with distance from the primary uptake location, or is absorption equal (in quantity and quality) throughout the plant?
If distance diminishes absorption of nutrients, wouldn't it make sense to sense to grow a melon as close to the stump as possible?
Jus' wonderin'. Clutch

7/1/2012 11:07:46 AM

formerly RGG

IMHO, it doesn't matter where on the plant a melon is grown. To me it is important to set a healthy melon in a spot with easy access. What matters is the length and health of the baby melon and the health of the plant. If the melon is on a small vine then the plant will increase the size of the vine the melon is on. And often the melons that are several feet out grow very fast so I think distance from the stump is no problem for a CC plant.

7/1/2012 1:16:12 PM

Ut

Mark- Good point. Pruning that dramatically all at once might be too much for the plant. (I still think someone should try it though). The question I have isn't necessarily “will it increase the melon growth”, but rather "can I gain melon weight at the same or similar rate on a much smaller plant?" If I can then there may be advantages in doing it that way.

TD- I am doing 4 melon plants but I will be lucky if I get one melon. I have a wicked fusarium wilt and my plants are already showing signs of it even though I’m in new soil this year. I also had a very unfortunate freak-pruning accident with a 255 Mitchell that hurts just to think about:) That’s one very obvious downside to pruning near the stump!

Clutchhitter- TD may be right. He has a lot of experience to go off of. However, it seems to be accepted as common knowledge in the giant pumpkin world that further out is better. I’m going to try to set fruit on the main vine after 10 feet out or so. I’m getting close. Many believe in what they call the “food factory” which they consider to be the plant between the fruit and the stump. “Food factory” people do not believe growth beyond the fruit contributes much to the fruit, nor do they think the other primary vines contribute. Melons may be similar to kins in this way. That’s what I am trying to find out.

7/2/2012 6:13:07 PM