Coolong stresses that the best way to protect vines is to turn them back in drive rows. Watermelon fields are set up in several groups of five or six beds that are divided by larger drive rows, which make the vines accessible by farm equipment.
How do you maintain a watermelon vine?
Using a good pair of gardening shears, remove any dead, diseased, yellowing, or infested leaves or shoots at the joint where they connect to the main stem. Also, remove any secondary vines that are not bearing blooms or look scrawny. Don’t prune the vines while wet.
How do I protect melons from rats?
Step by step: How to keep rodents off your melons with melon cages
- Get hardware cloth.
- Cut square-sized pieces of hardware cloth large enough to complete encircle your mature melons.
- Secure a cylindrical shape with metal string.
- Create your wire end folds.
- Close one end of your melon cage.
- Cage your melon.
How do you keep watermelons from rotting on the vine?
Use a cage, plastic mulch, stakes, straw mulch or other materials to protect the fruit from the ground. You can even use a wooden board for the fruit to rest on as it matures.
What is the best fertilizer for watermelons?
Choosing the best fertilizer for watermelon is the key to a quality harvest.
- BEST OVERALL: Dr.
- BEST BANG FOR THE BUCK: Espoma Garden Tone 3-4-4 Plant Food.
- PREMIUM PICK: Organic Plant Magic Super Premium Plant Food.
- BEST ORGANIC: Jobe’s Organics Granular Fertilizer.
- BEST LIQUID: Neptune’s Harvest Hydrolyzed Fish Fertilizer.
How do I make my watermelon sweeter when growing?
Heat brings out melons’ sweetness, so make sure to plant them in a location that warms up early in spring and stays hot through the end of September. The south side of a fence or wall is ideal as the structure will absorb heat and light from the sun and reflect it back onto the melons.
What to put under watermelons while growing?
In order to grow great watermelons, you’ll need to put a barrier between the watermelons and the ground. This is to reduce the risk of rot and disease. Good ground barriers are straw, or even cardboard.
What animal eats watermelon plants?
Now, will animals eat watermelon plants? Yes, animals like tree squirrels, rabbits, bugs, etc are common pests that damage garden plants such as watermelon plants. Raccoons and birds make holes throughout the melons which helps them to extract the sweet juice from within.
What pests do watermelons attract?
Watermelon Insects
- Thrips.
- Flea Beetles.
- Twospotted Spider Mites.
- Cabbage Loopers.
- Beet Armyworms.
- Grasshoppers.
- Leafminer Flies.
- Spotted & Striped Cucumber Beetles.
How often should you water watermelon?
Typically, watermelon plants need 1-2 inches of water per week so that the soil stays moist but not wet. If you’re not getting enough rain each week, make sure you give your plants an extra drink.
How do you protect melons from bugs?
Spray the watermelons with insecticidal soap. The entire plant must be covered with the substance, to the point of runoff. Reapply the product every seven to 10 days.
Do I need to keep watermelon off the ground?
That said, whether you’re growing cantaloupes, muskmelons or watermelons, leaving the ripening fruits on the ground can lead to rot and damage from pests such as slugs, earwigs, pill bugs and wireworms. Elevating developing melons so they don’t contact the soil solves this common problem.
What to spray on watermelons for bugs?
Insecticides Insecticides used in watermelon are: abamectin, esfenvalerate, diazinon, dimethoate, carbofuran, dicofol, methomyl, permethrin, carbaryl, endosulfan, imidacloprid, bifenthrin, beta-cyfluthrin, thiamethoxam, spiromesifin, fenpropathrin, dinotefuran, spintor, vydate, and fulfill.
Do rats eat watermelon?
Rats, much like people, love sugary treats, and sweet fruits are no exception. Berries are especially a hit with rats. Be aware that red berries can turn a rat’s stool red, which can resemble blood. Other fruits to feed pet rats include pears, watermelon, cantaloupe, kiwi, peaches, plums and grapes.
How do you keep raccoons away from watermelons?
Fences for Raccoons
The best way to keep raccoons out of the corn patch—or melons, tomatoes, and anything else that is ripe and tasty—is to exclude them from the area. Fencing works well, although raccoons are excellent climbers.
Is Epsom salt good for watermelons?
Flat, tasteless melons can be due to a lack of magnesium or boron in the soil. It has been found that such fruits can be sweetened by giving them a dose of Epsom salts and borax. For home garden use, use about 6 1/2 tablespoons of Epsom salts and 3 1/2 tablespoons of household borax, all added to five gallons of water.
How many watermelons will an acre produce?
While watermelons are grown across the U.S., most production occurs in the top five states (Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, and Texas), producing approximately 69 percent of all grown in the U.S. The average watermelon yield per acre in the U.S in 2020 was 39,704 pounds.
How do you make watermelons grow bigger?
To maximize the size of the melon, water the plants regularly in deep water sessions that keep the soil moist. Side dress the Watermelon plants with fertilizer prepared for edible crops or fertilizer tea to feed the plants. Fertilizer encourages growth to produce large melons.
What month do you plant watermelon?
Watermelons need about 100 days of warm weather to produce an edible melon. If the warm, late fall and winter weather of recent years continues, you may get a watermelon for Christmas. The best times to sow seeds for watermelons are early March and early August.
How many watermelons do you get per plant?
2-4 fruits
Healthy watermelon vines produce 2-4 fruits per plant. The vines produce both male and female flowers. Both are needed to set fruit and there are fewer female flowers compared to male, about one female for every seven males.
What is the best mulch for watermelons?
Melons need heat and plastic mulch can make a big difference. Black plastic mulch is most widely available and will raise soil temperatures 5°F versus bare ground. You can generate even more heat by using clear plastic mulch (8–14°F).