Animals such as squirrels, chipmunks, deer and woodchucks enjoy puncturing and eating melon crops. Coyotes and domesticated dogs also enjoy biting into sweet melons. Raccoons and birds make holes in the tops of melons and scoop or suck juices from the fruit’s inside.
Why does my watermelon have holes in it?
Poor pollination is the primary reason causing hollowheart. Scientists were able to prove that seedless watermelons are more likely to develop hollowheart when the pollenizer plants (diploid watermelons) are located further away from the seedless plants.
How do you protect watermelon from pests?
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.
Why does my watermelon sound hollow?
A ripe watermelon will have a hollow sound when knocked. An unripe watermelon will have more of a higher-pitched sound, while an overripe one will make a “thud” or a lower-pitched sound. Pick up the watermelon and give it a good sniff.
Is it OK to eat watermelon with hollow heart?
As hollow heart isn’t a disease, but a problem in the pollinating process, if your watermelon is affected by the issue then it should still be safe to eat, according to the experts. In fact, they may taste even sweeter than an unblemished fruit because its natural sugars are concentrated along the cracks in the flesh.
Can you eat watermelon with mosaic virus?
Are squash and melons affected by mosaic virus safe to eat? “Yes,” says Nebraska Food Safety Educator Carol Larvick, citing information from Minnesota Extension. “These viruses are specific to plants and do not harm humans.
What bug is eating my watermelons?
Several reports lately of very deformed watermelon plants, but also a few cucumber and cantaloupe fields. These distortions (fig. 1) most of the time are being caused by melon aphids Aphis gossypii Glover.
What pests do watermelons attract?
Watermelon Insects
- Thrips.
- Flea Beetles.
- Twospotted Spider Mites.
- Cabbage Loopers.
- Beet Armyworms.
- Grasshoppers.
- Leafminer Flies.
- Spotted & Striped Cucumber Beetles.
What kind of bugs eat watermelon?
Pickleworm and melonworm rarely attack watermelon. The principal insect and mite pests on watermelons in Florida are aphids, rindworms (caterpillars feeding on the rind, including beet and fall armyworms, cabbage looper, tobacco budworm, corn earworm, saltmarsh caterpillar, and others), whiteflies, and thrips.
How can you tell if a watermelon is overripe?
Consumers who still want to thump the watermelon should listen closely when their finger flicks the fruit. “An unripe watermelon will ‘ping’ when thumped. An overripe watermelon will ‘thud. ‘ The one you want to buy is somewhere in between,” Egel said.
Why is my watermelon split in the middle?
Water pressure within the fruit can build up when it gets too hot, causing the melons to split open. One way to help alleviate splitting is by adding straw mulch, which will help retain moisture in the soil and insulate plants. Adding shade covers during excessively hot periods may help too.
How do you stop a hollow heart from watermelon?
If you have hollow heart year after year early in the season but it clears up on its own, you may be able to correct the situation by hand-pollinating your flowers. If the problem is consistent and lasts all season, try adding boron to the soil even if a testing facility is unavailable.
Why do watermelons burst open?
Watermelons are 92 percent water, according to Clemson University’s Home & Garden Information Center, and have a shallow root system. If their soil is allowed to dry out, and then the unwary gardener overcompensates with too much irrigation; the pressure of water within the fruit will cause the rind to split.
What is a watermelon heart?
Whether a watermelon has seeds or not, it has a heart. The heart is the sweetest part and it is the seedless part right in the middle.
Is a hollow watermelon good?
1. Do a thump test. A ripe watermelon should have a deep hollow sound when you thump the rind with your hand, similar to a knock on the door. An unripe melon will have a more high-pitched resonance, whereas an overripe melon will sound more like a thud.
Is mosaic virus harmful to humans?
The mosaic virus is not harmful to humans or pets since the virus is specific to plants.
Can watermelon have a viral infection?
A large number of viruses have been reported from time to time to infect this crop viz., watermelon mosaic virus-1 [1], watermelon mosaic virus-2 [2], zuchini yellow mosaic virus [3], cucumber mosaic virus [4-9], papaya ring spot virus [10], watermelon chlorotic stunt virus [11] melon necrotic spot virus [12],
What causes watermelon mosaic virus?
Watermelon mosaic virus can be transmitted in multiple ways including vector transmission or physical interactions of a person or tool, but the primary means of transmission is through aphids. At least 29 species of aphid, including Aphis gossypii and Aphis craccivora, are known to have the ability to vector the virus.
Can there be parasites in watermelon?
The rinds of the watermelon fruit are very appealing to various types of worms. As a whole, these are referred to as rind worms. Some common rind worms include armyworms, tobacco budworms, earworms and salt-marsh caterpillars.
What is a watermelon worm?
Melon worms are elongate greenish larvae with darker head that cause severe feeding damage to vines and fruit of most melons. Closely related to the pickle worm that attack cucumbers. In areas that never receive frost (southern Texas and Florida), melon worms may be a year round problem.
How do you get rid of melon worms?
In insecticide-free cucurbit production and in home gardens, melonworm can cause serious damage. In addition to conventional synthetic insecticides, the botanical material neem and the biological insecticide Bacillus thuringiensis are effective for melonworm control.