High temperatures or high fertility can cause the cantaloupe to produce only male blooms which results in poor fruit set. Nematodes can also cause small plants, profusion of blooms and no fruit.
Why is my melon plant not producing female flowers?
However, high temperatures can also cause cantaloupes to not produce female flowers. The ideal growing range for cantaloupe is between 65-95 °F (18-35 °C). If it gets hotter than this, the cantaloupe vine might only produce male flowers.
Why is my cantaloupe flowering but not producing fruit?
The most likely cause of such fruit problems on squash, muskmelons (cantaloupe), cucumbers, watermelons and other cucurbit vegetables is a lack of pollination. These plants have separate male flowers (bloom attached by a small, thin stalk) and female flowers (small fruit at base of bloom).
How do I pollinate my cantaloupe?
First find a male flower and carefully pluck the petals off of it, leaving just the stamen, which contains the pollen. Then find the female flower and gently take the stigma from the male flower, striking the stigma 10–15 times to release the pollen. The complete flowers are pollinated the same way.
Do you need two cantaloupe plants to pollinate?
You need at least one male and one female flower for hand pollinating melon plants. Both male and female melon flowers are ready for the pollination process when they are open. If they are still shut, they are still immature and will not be able to either give or receive viable pollen.
Can you trim back a cantaloupe plant?
As mentioned, pruning cantaloupe plants isn’t absolutely necessary and, in fact, the more leaves that remain on the vine the sweeter the fruit. That said, cutting back cantaloupe plants results in fewer fruit which enables the plant to put all of its energy into a scant few, resulting in larger melons.
How long after flowering do cantaloupe grow?
Harvest and Storage
Cantaloupe require 35-45 days to mature from flowering, depending on the temperature and variety. Use the following guide to determine fruit maturity.
How do you get melons to fruit?
For best performance, plant melons in hot, sunny locations with fertile, well drained soils. Plant melon seeds 1 week to 10 days before the last spring frost date. Watermelon and honeydew are more cold-sensitive than cantaloupe. Melons will not all ripen at the same time, so plan to pick them as they become ready.
How many cantaloupes will one plant produce?
Each plant can produce anywhere from four to eight delicious melons.
Why are my cantaloupe not getting bigger?
If you don’t have enough bees in your yard, this can affect pollination. Fruit set can also be affected if too much nitrogen fertilizer has been applied. In the heat of summer, vines often produce only male flowers, which don’t produce fruit. Vines are too crowded.
Do cantaloupe plants self pollinate?
Although cantaloupes are different than other vining crops because they have flowers which contain male and female parts as well as those which contain only male parts, pollination by bees is still necessary.
How do you manually pollinate?
To hand pollinate, remove the petals from a male blossom to reveal the stamen at its center. If you look closely, you’ll see pollen clinging to it. Touch it with your finger or a small paintbrush and carry the pollen on your finger or the brush to the female blossoms.
Why are my cantaloupe not sweet?
Cantaloupe (Cucumis melo) flavor depends upon environmental conditions. High rainfall or excessive irrigation as the cantaloupes near maturity will adversely affect fruit flavor. Also, diseases which reduce the vigor of the plant and the leaves’ ability to produce sugar will affect fruit flavor.
What is the best fertilizer for cantaloupe?
For seeded or transplanted cantaloupes, apply 100 to 150 pounds per acre of a pop-up fertilizer such as 10-34-0 to enhance early growth, especially in cool/cold soils early in the spring. Pop-up fertilizer should be banded 2 to 3 inches to the side of the row and 2 to 3 inches below the seeds or roots.
How do you make cantaloupe sweeter when growing?
8 Tips for Growing The Sweetest Melons
- Start with the Sweetest Varieties.
- Sow Seeds Early.
- Find Your Warmest Microclimate.
- Accentuate the Sun’s Rays.
- Don’t Crowd Your Melons.
- Sweetness Starts in the Soil.
- Water Heavily – But not During Ripening.
- Pick at the Pinnacle of Ripeness.
How can you tell if a melon flower is pollinated?
At the base of the female flower’s pistil, the ovary will form fruit when the plant has been pollinated. This is often the first true sign that your watermelon flower is going to turn into a melon. Fruit will begin forming at the base of the female watermelon’s flower pistil if it has been pollinated.
Should I pinch off cantaloupe flowers?
Avoid pinching off shoots because an abundance of healthy leaves will produce sweeter fruit. For best flavor, leave the largest fruit growing on the vine and pinch off any young fruits that begin to form.
Do cantaloupe fall off the vine when ripe?
In most cases, when cantaloupes and muskmelons are ripe, they detach themselves from the vine, leaving a dish-shaped scar on the fruit where the stem was attached. The fruit will also develop a sweet, musky aroma when ripe.
Can you plant cantaloupe in the same spot every year?
1 Don’t Plant Cantaloupes in the Same Place Two Years in a Row. Not only should you avoid consistently planting cantaloupes in the same location of your garden each year, but you should also avoid planting pumpkins, squash, and any other member of the cucumber family in the same location each year.
Should you fertilize cantaloupe plants?
Cantaloupe plants are fertilized after flowers appear. At this point, you use phosphorus and potassium fertilizers. Select a formula such as 5-10-10. If you add nitrogen-rich manure this time, the plant will grow huge but will not produce any fruit.
Do cantaloupe come back every year?
A: Unfortunately, cantaloupes are an annual and will die off once the vine has finished producing its melons.