Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Support melons by tying a panty-hose sling to a trellis or fence.
Pest potential.
If striped cucumber beetles are pesky in your area, start your melons in-
doors to give the plants time to gain strength before they are attacked. With transplants
it's much easier to keep ahead of the beetles by picking them off by hand whenever they
appear. Young seedlings could be eaten up before you even realize the bugs are around.
Row covers will protect plants from cucumber beetles, but you must remove them once
flowers appear so bees can pollinate the flowers. For severe infestations, pyrethrins or
rotenone provide control.
How to Harvest
Recognizing a ripe melon is a knack, and no one can really teach it to you. It takes ex-
perience. Aroma is one good test — a melon that smells fragrant and ready to eat usu-
ally is. With the cantaloupe types, the melon will slip easily from the vine when ready.
Just give a little tug; if it's ready to be picked, it will come off in your hands. Maturity
dates are only a limited guide. The moment of perfect ripeness is something you devel-
op a sixth sense for, and some people are just better at it than others. Practice at your
local farm stand, where you can ask advice and taste-test your choices.
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