Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
When you plant the young melons into the bed, sprinkle a little slow-release
organic fertiliser into the planting hole, and make sure that the soil level of the
root ball ends up 5cm or so higher than the surrounding soil. This prevents the
base of the stem from getting waterlogged (an invitation to slugs and woodlice).
As the main stem grows upwards, wrap it gently around the string until it reaches
the top. Secure it to the crop bar or top wire with a loose loop of twine and nip
out the growing point. It is also a good idea to secure the main stem to anchor
loops on the growing string in a couple of places. The plants sometimes split to
produce two main stems, and it is usually best to make an early decision as to
which to nip out, otherwise things can get a little crowded, causing poor air
circulation and a higher risk of moulds.
While the main stem is growing, the plant will begin to grow side-shoots, and
once the plant is 'topped' these can get very vigorous indeed, requiring attention
two or three times a week. Flowering will start well before this, but do not worry
that all the first flowers are male; the females will soon follow. These have a
swelling at the base like a baby melon, and once the first ones appear you will
immediately see the difference. In heated greenhouses melons were traditionally
hand-pollinated by transferring pollen from the male flowers to the females with
an absolutely dry paint brush, but if you have plenty of flying insects in your
tunnel there is usually no need to bother. If you do decide to intervene, a less
fussy way of hand-pollinating is to remove the petals from a fully open male
flower and touch it to the centre of a female flower. To make absolutely sure,
repeat the process with a second male flower. Once the female flower base has
swollen to the size of a marble without discolouring, you will know it has 'set'.
The only 'trick' to growing melons successfully in our relatively short growing
season is the use of thinning and pruning to make sure that the plant concen-
trates all its energy on an appropriate number of fruits. Rather than letting lots
of fruit set and hoping for a spectacular summer to ripen them, stick to no more
than three per plant. This should give you a reliable harvest, and if the summer
does turn out to be a good one they will simply grow bigger and sweeter.
Harvesting and storage
With most varieties of cantaloupe and musk melon you will be alerted to early
ripening by the wonderful aroma, which on hot days will fill the tunnel with its
unmistakable sweetness, but the chances are that you will be keeping an anxious
watch on the fruits for a while before that. Visual clues of ripening differ between
varieties, but the easiest way to test a plump melon for ripeness is to press gently
at the blossom end. If the fruit gives a little it is almost ready to take. Cut the fruit
from the plant and keep it in a warm room for a few days before eating. To enjoy
the fruit absolutely ripe, however, you can leave it until it is ready to drop, trusting
to the net bags to stop this from actually happening. Small cracks form around
the point at which the stem meets the fruit, and about a week later the melon will
