Half a watermelon forgotten at the back of the fridge stops being food quickly. The flesh turns grainy while the juice separates out, and the smell announces itself whenever the door opens. Into the trash it goes – several pounds of organic matter bound for landfill for no reason.

The garden has better uses for it, though none work the way people assume. Treating spoiled fruit as homemade plant food is sound enough as an instinct. A melon just isn't fertilizer and won't behave like one. What it offers is raw material, plus a side benefit for wildlife that rarely gets mentioned.

1. Turn Overripe Watermelon Into Natural Plant Food

Start with what a watermelon is made of. Roughly 92 percent is water, leaving a thin margin of sugars and fiber once that evaporates away. Drop a melon into a planting hole expecting a nutrient boost and the plant receives almost none of it – no nitrogen in a form roots can use, no phosphorus ready to take up.

Microbes have to get there first. Bacteria and fungi dismantle the flesh and rind into humus across several weeks, releasing minerals as they go. None of that is a knock against the melon. It's the same process running any compost heap. What comes out improves soil structure and moisture retention, with nutrients in forms roots can take up – exactly what raw melon fails to offer. You can do it yourself with this compost bin from Amazon.

How To Add Watermelon to Your Compost Pile

Chop it small first. A whole melon sits in a heap as a sealed unit, breaking down from the outside over months. Pieces cut to a few inches (8cm) across give the organisms far more surface to work on. Include the rind – tougher than the flesh and slower to go, but it composts fine.

Too much melon at once is where this goes wrong. Watermelon is a green in composting terms – wet and nitrogen-heavy, and a heap fed too much of it turns sour and airless. Every addition wants dry browns over it. Fallen leaves do the job, shredded cardboard too, at roughly two or three parts brown to one part melon.

Can You Bury Watermelon Straight in the Garden?

Trench composting skips the heap altogether. Pick an unplanted spot and dig down at least 12 inches (30cm). The chopped melon goes in the bottom. Backfill until a solid 8 inches (20cm) of soil covers it. Worms and soil bacteria handle the rest underground, out of reach of anything with a nose. A Fiskars transplant spade from Walmart reaches that depth quickly enough that there's no reason to cut the job short.

Depth is doing all the work here. Bury the fruit shallowly and it fails outright – raccoons and rats turn up within days, flies not long after. Leave the spot a few weeks before planting into it as well, since material in the thick of decomposition ties up soil nitrogen temporarily and leaves early plantings hungry at the wrong moment.

Save a Slice for Butterflies and Moths

Flowers aren't the only thing butterflies drink from. Red admirals (Vanessa atalanta) and commas (Polygonia comma) feed at rotting fruit quite happily, and some species seem to prefer it. Concentrated energy is part of the draw. Fermenting sugars also carry minerals and yeasts no blossom offers. Plenty of moths work the same way after dark – fruit-baiting is an old trick among the people who study them.

Late summer is when this counts. Nectar thins out as the flowering season winds down, right as butterflies building reserves for overwintering need it most. A slice of overripe watermelon fills that gap. Replacing anything is beyond it, though. Nectar-rich planting and host plants stay the foundation, and a fruit dish only makes sense in a garden that has both.

How to Make a Simple Watermelon Feeding Station

The setup asks almost nothing. One or two small slices on a shallow dish, somewhere flat and stable, is the whole of it. A terracotta plant saucer from Amazon suits the job because the low sides let butterflies land and reach the fruit without any climbing, and clay stays cooler than plastic under direct sun.

Keep portions modest. Two slices are easy to refresh and easy to rinse, while a plate piled high becomes a problem long before it gets finished. A splash of water stops the fruit drying to leather, and the damp seems to help the fermenting smell travel – which is how insects locate it at all.

Where to Place It, and When to Remove It

Placement decides whether this stays charming or turns irritating. Fermenting fruit draws wasps and ants as readily as butterflies, so the dish belongs well away from doors and anywhere people sit. A sheltered corner beside a hedge works better anyway, out of the wind, with cover close by for the insects using it.

Swap the fruit out every couple of days rather than letting a dish run on indefinitely. Old melon slumps into slime and grows mold, and by then it stops drawing the visitors you wanted. Rinse the saucer between servings, since residue builds fast in the heat. If wasp numbers climb past comfortable, pull the dish for a stretch. The butterflies find it again once it returns.

Avoid These Overripe Watermelon Mistakes

Scale is the big one. A whole melon parked beside a tomato as a natural feed does nothing measurable for the plant and a great deal for the local rat population. The smell alone makes that corner unpleasant for weeks. Whatever goes into the ground goes in chopped and deep, and the rest belongs in the heap.

Seeds are the surprise waiting at the end. They come through a cool heap intact, so unless the pile properly heats, expect volunteer seedlings wherever that compost lands. Sap beetles (Nitidulidae) and fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) gather around exposed fruit as well, and neither does real harm outdoors. Split the melon between its two jobs and none of this becomes trouble. A couple of slices go out for the butterflies, and the rest gets chopped into the heap or buried deep, quietly turning into next season's soil while nobody watches.

Nothing says summer like a sweet slice of watermelon. Interestingly, the original watermelons were quite bitter and were selectively bred to be sweet over the course of thousands of years. The ancestors of our modern watermelons were first cultivated in Africa and scientists have recently traced the genome back to a wild variety found in Libya and Sudan at least 6,000 years ago.

That’s a lot of generations of humans and their agricultural efforts to get us to our sweet and juicy modern watermelons! Luckily for the modern home gardener, growing watermelons is easier than ever. A few simple tips and tricks will help you grow the sweetest, juiciest watermelons you have ever tasted. It just takes a little bit of gardening know-how.

Let’s crack open the secrets to growing best watermelons this summer!

1. Turn Up the Heat

As mentioned above, watermelons are native to the northern part of the African continent so they like it hot. The hotter the conditions, the sweeter your watermelons will be. Soil temperatures should be at least 65 degrees Fahrenheit (18.3 C) before you plant seeds or transplant any indoor-grown seedlings. You can check the top couple inches of soil with a soil thermometer to ensure proper conditions for good germination and healthy plants. This soil thermometer from Urban Worm is available on Amazon and has a large easy-to-read dial.

If you live in a cooler climate, you can increase the warmth of your watermelons by growing them under a floating row cover until temperatures are hot enough. Row cover fabric, our favorite is on Amazon, can be used with hoops or just laid directly over plants. If using a row cover, be sure to ventilate when air temperature reaches 80 degrees F (26.6 C), and remove the cover if temperature reaches 90 degrees F (32.2 C). Watermelons need at least 8 hours of direct sunlight to convert the sun’s energy into tasty fruit.

2. Banish Pests

If your watermelon is destroyed by pests, it isn’t going to be juicy or sweet because you won’t be eating it! Common watermelon pests include aphids, armyworms, cucumber beetles, leaf miners, cutworms, crickets, darkling beetles, and spider mites. Your backyard wildlife might also try to take a bite of your melons (I’ve lost many to a family of groundhogs living under my shed). However, pest management needs to be thoughtfully applied because your watermelons rely on pollination by bees and other beneficial insects. Pesticides don’t discriminate between good bugs and bad bugs.

Using row covers early in the season can help keep pests off of watermelon seedlings, handpicking armyworms and other caterpillars from the plants is an easy daily task. You should also rotate your crops to reduce pests. It’s important to pay attention to plant types when rotating, too. Watermelons and cucumbers are both in the same family (Cucurbitaceae), so pests that were attracted to your cucumbers last year will attack your watermelons this year.

I have had success in keeping animals from taking a bite out of my watermelons by slipping the fruits into some old pantyhose. Pantyhose also make a great sling material to support melons that are growing from a trellis or need a lift off the ground. And even something as simple as placing a laundry basket upside down over the fruits and weighing it down with a brick will keep most animals at bay.

3. Give Them Space

Watermelons need plenty of elbow room to grow big and sweet. Each plant needs at least 3 to 5 feet (1-1.5 m) of space. The tremendous leaves on your plant convert the sun’s rays into sugars in the fruit, so giving them room to grow will help you get the tastiest watermelon possible.

Planting watermelons too close to each other or other plants increases the likelihood of fungal infections on the leaves like powdery mildew and anthracnose. Your watermelon leaves and vines need good airflow to prevent fungal infections. You should also keep an eye on the bottom of your watermelons, if they sit on damp soil the fruit can develop belly rot. Place a thick layer of straw or wood mulch under the fruit to keep them from becoming too damp.

4. Proper Watering

Watermelons are more than 90% water so they need to be watered deeply to be juicy and delicious. It is recommended to give watermelon plants 1 to 2 inches of water per week. A soaker hose buried under the mulch will help keep leaves dry and prevent fungal infections. You can find an affordable soaker hose from Walmart if you don’t already use one.

However, at the end of the season, everything changes. You should stop watering about a week before harvesting watermelons. This will concentrate the sweetness in the fruit and prevent it from bursting as it continues to ripen.

Proper watering, plant spacing, pest control, and growing conditions will ensure your watermelons will be filled with the sweetness of summer. Time to get growing!

The watermelon is inarguably the perfect summer food, yet everyone has a differing opinion on how to pick out a ripe watermelon. Unlike other fruit, the color, aroma and feel are not indicators of watermelon ripeness – but what is? How do you know if a watermelon is ripe? Do you thump it, heft it, what? We’ve got the answers. Keep reading to learn how to pick a sweet watermelon that everyone can agree on.

How to Pick a Good Watermelon

Almost everyone loves the delicious, nutritious watermelon, but we seem to be at odds as to how to pick the perfect one out. Everyone has an opinion but who’s right? Depending on how many people you ask, there are probably as many answers to how to pick a watermelon as there are slices of this juicy fruit.

1. Buy from a Trusted Source

Unlike other fruit, watermelon does not ripen after it has been plucked from the vine. That means that hopefully, whoever you buy it from has picked the melon at its peak. From the supermarket to the farmer’s market, watermelons are picked when they are ripe and ready to eat. However, some are better than others.

2. Look for a Large, Round Fruit

Yes, watermelons are generally large and roundish, but you’re looking for the one that is more round than oval with no obvious irregularities and is big. The larger watermelons of the same shipment will have had the most time on the vine, so they will be the ripest.

3. Choose One with a Duller Rind

Believe it or not, the best melons will not be the prettiest. Instead, they will have a dull overall appearance. Shiny, bright green watermelons are actually underripe.

4. Find the Field Spot

Along with not being the most attractive melon, there is a major blemish you should look for. Look for the “field spot,” a large yellow area on one side of the melon. This is where the melon rested in the field as it grew. If the watermelon is ripe, the field spot will be more of a creamy, buttery yellow. The larger the field spot and the lighter the yellow hue, the longer the watermelon ripened on the vine.

5. Feel Its Weight

Bigger isn’t always better, but in the case of the best watermelon, it’s true. Pick up several melons to test them before choosing. You’re looking for the melon that feels heavier than it looks. The denser the melon compared to its size, the higher the water content, thus the juicier the melon.

6. Look for the “Sugar Bumps”

Again, the sweetest watermelon isn’t going to win a beauty contest. Look for melons that have extensive webbing or small spots of what looks like dirt. These spots are called sugar spots or bumps and are the pollination points where sugar seeps out of the fruit. A melon with these blemishes means it’s a sweet melon.

7. Give It a Thump for Good Measure

We’ve probably all heard about thumping a melon to see if it's ripe but is it true? Well, it can’t hurt. When knocked on, a ripe watermelon should make a deep, hollow sound. When not ripe, the sound is higher in pitch and denser.

Other Ways to Tell if a Watermelon is Ripe

Supposedly the striping on a ripe watermelon is another tell-tale sign of ripeness. The striping should be obvious, with green bands alternating dark green to light.

Also, if your melon still has a stem, the stem should be dry and light brown if it is ripe. This seems a bit suspect however, because it may just be an indication of how long it's been since it was picked.

Perhaps the best indicator of ripeness and sweetness is to pick your watermelon when it is in season. All fruits and vegetables have a natural season and in the case of watermelon, your best bet is from May to September.

What are the best companion plants for watermelon? Perhaps you're familiar with the three sisters style of gardening. In this type of companion planting, corn, beans and squash are grown together for the mutual benefits these plants provide each other. This technique can also be used with other plants, such as watermelon.

What is Companion Planting

Companion planting, also called intercropping, is the practice of growing two or more crops in close proximity. Using the three sisters as an example, consider the benefits each plant offers:

• Beans fix nitrogen into the soil which is utilized by the corn and squash.
• Corn provides a support for the beans to climb.
• Squash acts as a living mulch. Plus, the prickly leaves deter deer and raccoons from the corn and beans.

To find suitable watermelon companion plants, let's first consider what benefits watermelon plants provide. Like the squash in the three sister planting, watermelon plants can also be used a living mulch. As the plants grow, they shade the soil. This conserves moisture and deters weeds.

Secondly, let's examine what characteristics of other plants would be advantageous to watermelons in a companion garden plot:

• Improved pollination – Watermelon flowers open in the early morning and only last one day. For the highest quality fruit, each watermelon flower requires several visits from pollinators. In a watermelon companion planting, plants which attracts bees can increase yields and improve the appearance of the melons.
• Pest repellent – Watermelon plants can be damaged by any number of pests. Plants known to deter insects make good companions.
• Room to grow – Many watermelon varieties have vines which can reach 12 to 20 feet (4-6 m.) long. Choose a companion plant that won't compete for space.
• Full sun – Watermelon plants grown in shady conditions produce fewer and smaller fruit. Avoid tall, leafy companion plants.

What Can You Plant with Watermelon

• Onions – The strong smell of allium crops offer protection to watermelon vines and fruit by deterring pests, including deer and insects. The spiky foliage of onions won't shade the watermelons and the bulbs can be dug after the watermelon has been harvested.
• Flowers – Choose low-growing species of flowers known to attract pollinators. Good choices include dwarf bee balm, snap dragons or poppies. Marigolds will not only attract bees, but will also deter aphids. 
• Cotton – Studies indicate intercropping cotton with watermelons doesn't decrease melon yields, but allows cotton to be harvested from the same field.
• Herbs – Herbs like cilantro and dill won't crowd or shade watermelon plants, but they will attracts beneficial insects which feed upon aphids and other melon pests.
• Lettuce – This leafy green is neither tall nor shade-producing. Sow leaf lettuce at the same time as watermelons, then harvest the leafy greens before the melon vines need the space.
• Radishes – These fast-maturing veggies can also be used in a companion planting for watermelon to temporarily utilize vacant space while melon vines are growing. Radishes can also be grown alongside onions, dill and lettuce.

Few fruits scream "summer" quite as much as watermelon. There are many watermelon varieties including those in surprising hues and different sizes. Out of all the types of watermelon to grow, make sure to select one that will produce and ripen in your zone. Northern gardeners will want short season crops while warm region growers can select from a wider catalogue. 

In order to get juicy, sweet watermelon, you need to select the right option and time your planting to suit your zone. These fruits need anywhere from 90 to 130 days from seed to harvest, making them a tough plant to grow in cooler climes. 

Short Season Watermelon Growing

Big melons need about 4 months of warm, frost free weather. In cooler climates, the seeds will need to be started indoors and planted out after any danger of frost has passed, usually 6 weeks prior. Harden off seedlings and prepare the bed by mixing in a generous amount of compost. The smaller varieties are the best choice, but there are some large fruits suitable for shorter seasons. Here are a few short season watermelon varieties for northern gardeners:

• Sugar Baby- A smaller variety, with dark, almost black rind, and reddish orange flesh
• Yellow Doll- A fun choice with small fruit, thin rind and surprising yellow flesh
• Cole's Early- Developed as an early hybrid, large striped fruit, sweet, pinkish red flesh

Big Watermelon Fruits

If you are looking for fruits that can get to giant proportions, there are several to try. Keep in mind they need to be started as early as possible, will need plenty of water and rich, well- draining soil. During watermelon growing periods, keep the area weed free. Use soaker hoses or drip systems to prevent fungal diseases. Fertilize once the plant starts developing buds. In order to promote monster fruit, cull all but the largest so the plant directs all its energy to producing heavy, large melons. 

• Carolina Cross- Can get an impressive 250 pounds
• American Champion- A variety from the late 1800s that will produce fruit at a more modest 100 pounds
• Yellow Belly Black Diamond- A yellow fleshed type, fruits come in at around 60-70 pounds
• Blue Rind- As the name would indicate, the rind is bluish green. Comes in at 160 pounds

Playing with Color

Red fleshed fruits are the kind we all remember from our summer picnics but watermelon breeding has undergone a surge, developing melons for every need and taste. There are now seedless hybrids, types with different colored rinds, and even a rainbow of flesh tones. You can find orange, yellow and even pink fleshed types of watermelon to grow. Each has classic watermelon flavor but may vary in intensity and sweetness. Plant several of these choices and you can make a beautiful fruit salad filled with color. 

• OrangeGlo- By all accounts, the most flavorful of the orange varieties. Also resistant to wilt disease and insects
• Harvest Moon- A pink variety of medium sized with crisp, sweet flesh• Amarillo- Deeply yellow with striped rind

Some of us expect to grow watermelons this season. We know they need plenty of growing room, sunshine, and water. Perhaps we’re not sure which type of watermelon to grow though, since there are many to choose from. Why not try growing Fordhook watermelons. Read on to learn more about them.

Fordhook Hybrid Melon Info

Many of us may look for open-pollinated heirloom types, proven to be wonderful to eat. However, if we have limited time to spend on the watermelon patch, we might consider growing Fordhook melons. This watermelon is drought tolerant once established and needs less care than most.

Its taste is compared to that of the Sugar Baby icebox melon, and some say it tastes a little better. Fordhook melon information reminds us of certain considerations of Fordhook watermelon care.

How to Grow Fordhook Watermelons

Before planting this watermelon in the garden, make sure the soil is weakly acidic and alkaline, with a pH of 6.5 to 7.5. Take a soil test if you don’t know the soil pH. Prepare soil by tilling and removing rocks. Remove all weeds and add well-finished compost to enrich the soil.

Don’t plant until the soil warms to 61 degrees F. (16 C.) and all chance of frost has passed. Choose a sunny spot where the first morning sun lasts until noon, or around 2 p.m. in cooler zones. Melons can potentially get sunburn in higher zones on hot afternoons.

Plant seeds or seedlings about 8 feet (2 m.) or so apart to accommodate a big root system.

Leave room for vines to stretch out roughly 6 feet (2 m.) or further.

Fordhook Watermelon Care

Keep soil moist until seedlings or transplants have developed a hardy root system. Even drought-tolerant plants need regular watering when first planted. At this point, you might neglect watering a day or so. Check to see if the soil has dried out before leaving the watering to another day.

When to water your melon patch will depend a good deal on how hot days are in your area. Fordhook watermelon is a vigorous grower and you don’t want to slow growth by lack of water.

Fruits are usually ready to harvest in about 74 days and will generally weigh about 14 to 16 pounds (6-7 kg.).

Fresh, homegrown watermelon is a delectable summertime treat. Whether hoping to grow large, sweet melons or smaller icebox types, growing your own watermelon in the home garden is a rewarding task. Though several high-quality varieties of open pollinated watermelon are available, newly introduced hybrid cultivars also offer interesting and unique characteristics – like ‘New Orchid,’ which offers growers a distinct sherbet colored flesh that is perfect for fresh eating.

New Orchid Watermelon Info

New Orchid watermelon plants are a type of icebox watermelon. Icebox watermelons are generally smaller, usually weighing less than about 10 pounds (4.5 kg.) The compact size of these melons makes them ideal for storage in refrigerators. When fully mature, New Orchid melons demonstrate distinctive green stripes and an inner juicy flesh that is a bright and vibrant orange in color.

How to Grow a New Orchid Melon

The process of growing New Orchid watermelons is very similar to that of growing any other open pollinated or hybrid melon variety. The plants will thrive in a warm, sunny location that receives at least six to eight hours of sunlight each day.

In addition to sunlight, New Orchid watermelon plants will require space in the garden that is well draining and has been amended. Planting in hills is a very common technique. Each hill should be spaced at least 6 feet (2 m.) apart. This will allow adequate space as the vines begin to crawl throughout the garden.

To germinate watermelon seeds, soil temperatures of at least 70 degrees F. (21 C.) are required. For those with long growing seasons, the seeds of the watermelon plants can be sown directly into the garden. Since New Orchid watermelons reach maturity in 80 days, those with shorter summer growing seasons may need to start the seeds indoors before the last frost has passed to ensure that there is adequate time for the melons to ripen.

New Orchid Melon Care

As with any watermelon variety, it will be important to provide consistent irrigation throughout the growing season. For many, melons will need weekly watering throughout the hottest part of the growing season until the watermelon fruits have started to ripen.

Since watermelons are warm season crops, those living in cooler climates may need to help extend the growing season through the use of low tunnels and/or landscape fabrics. Providing consistent heat and moisture will help to grow the best melons possible.

Watermelons that are ready for harvest will usually have a yellow-cream color in the location where the melon was in contact with the soil. Additionally, the tendril nearest the stem should be dried and brown. If you are still uncertain whether the melon is ripe, many growers try to scratch the rind. If the skin of the fruit is hard to scratch, it is likely that the watermelon is ready to be picked.

I want to be the one to come up with the creative and colorful common names for plants. Take Moon and Stars watermelon, for example. An heirloom watermelon, Moon and Stars is aptly named. It is a medium to large watermelon variety that has recently been rediscovered and popular once again. Its appearance is appealing, but the taste is "out of this world." It is important to preserve our heirloom produce varieties. Many of these were developed by botanists and students of plant propagation, but others were just happy accidents. Seeds from many of these plants were passed down generation to generation, preserving unique varieties that had quirky appeal for one reason or another. Moon and Stars is once such fruit.

Moon and Stars Watermelon History

The old-fashioned Moon and Stars watermelon is a dark belle variety with deeply green skin. It was originally introduced by Peter Henderson and Co. in 1926. At the time, a packet of seeds was only 20 cents. Can you imagine? My, how times have changed! It was introduced as Sun, Moon and Stars, but the name has since been shortened. The original was bred from Citrullus lanatus, but there have been several new cultivars introduced such as Cherokee Moon and Stars, Long Milky Way Moon, Pink Flesh Amish Moon, Yellow Flesh Moon and Stars, and Van Doren's Moon and Stars. The latter melon was found in the 1980s and featured in Mother Earth News.

About the Old-Fashioned Moon and Stars Watermelon

Among heirloom watermelons, this is a very visually appealing variety combined with superior flavor. The deep green, slightly rippled skin is dappled with small bright yellow flecks and one or two larger irregular spots - hence, the sun and moon moniker. The plant's foliage is even speckled with golden markings. The fruits are oblong to oval and can be diminutive 8 pounders (3.6 kg.) to 40-pound (18 kg.) monsters. Seeds are white and the flesh is pinkish red, sweet and delicious. This is an open pollinated melon, so if you want to save seed, make sure there are no other melon varieties nearby.

Growing Moon and Stars Melons

Seeds can be ordered online from that nurseries that specialize in heirloom varieties. If you are lucky enough to get hold of some seed, sow directly outdoors in warm regions. Northern gardeners should start the plants indoors 8 weeks before the date of the last frost. From seed to fruit in good conditions, harvesting will commence in 95 days. Watermelons need well-draining soil but plenty of water. Water from under the leaves to prevent powdery mildew. Don't forget to save your seeds for the next year and share some with your neighbors. This is a great way to spread the word about this beautiful and delicious heirloom melon.

Few things are as refreshing on a hot summer day than the juicy fruit of fresh from the garden watermelon. Homegrown watermelon can be served in fresh cut balls, slices, or chunks and added to fruit salads, sorbets, smoothies, slushies, cocktails, or soaked in spirits. Summer melon dishes can delight the eye, as well as our taste buds, when different, colorful varieties are used.

Yellow watermelons can be used with or as a substitute for pink and red watermelons, for fun summer treats, or cocktails. This summer, if you feel like getting adventurous in the garden and kitchen, you may enjoy growing a Yellow Crimson watermelon plant, or even two.

Yellow Crimson Watermelon Info

Yellow watermelons are not a new hybrid fad by any means. In fact, watermelon varieties with white or yellow flesh have been around longer than pink or red-fleshed watermelons. Yellow watermelons are believed to have originated in South Africa, but have been so widely cultivated for so long that their exact native range is unknown. Today, the most common variety of yellow watermelon is the heirloom plant Yellow Crimson.

Yellow Crimson watermelon closely resembles the popular red variety, Crimson Sweet watermelon. Yellow Crimson bears medium to large 20 pound (9 kg.) fruits with a hard, dark green, striped rind and sweet, juicy yellow flesh inside. The seeds are large and black. Yellow Crimson watermelon plants grow to only about 6 to 12 inches (15-31 cm.) tall but will spread about 5 to 6 feet (1.5-2 m.).

How to Grow Yellow Crimson Watermelon

When growing a Yellow Crimson watermelon, plant in good garden soil in a site with full sun. Watermelons and other melons can be susceptible to many fungal problems when located in poorly draining soil or inadequate sunlight.

Plant seeds or young watermelon plants in hills that are spaced 60 to 70 inches (153-178 cm.) apart, with only two to three plants per hill. Yellow Crimson seeds will mature in approximately 80 days, providing an early harvest of fresh summer watermelons.

Like its counterpart, Crimson Sweet, Yellow Crimson melon care is easy and plants are said to produce high yields throughout mid to late summer.

For many people, juicy ripe watermelons are a summertime favorite. Beloved for their sweet and refreshing taste, garden-fresh watermelons are truly a delight. While the process of growing watermelons is fairly simple, even the most experienced growers may encounter issues that reduce yields or lead to the ultimate demise of their watermelon plants.

In order to grow the best crop of watermelons, it is best that growers better familiarize themselves with pests and diseases that may impact the overall health of plants. One such disease, watermelon southern blight, is especially harmful during the hottest parts of the growing season.

What is Southern Blight of Watermelons?

Southern blight on watermelons is a fungal disease caused by the fungi, Sclerotium rolfsii. Though the incidence of this specific type of blight has increased in other crops over the last several years, the blight of crops such as watermelon and cantaloupe is common and can often occur in the home garden.

Signs of Southern Blight on Watermelon

The signs and symptoms of southern blight on watermelons may not be immediately noticeable. Watermelons with southern blight may first show subtle signs of wilting. This wilting will progress, especially on hot days, causing the entire plant to wilt.

In addition to wilting, watermelon plants infected with this type of blight will demonstrate girdling at the base of the plant. Over several days, the plant will begin to yellow and eventually die. Since the disease is soilborne, fruits in contact with the ground may also suddenly begin to rot and decay.

Treating Watermelons with Southern Blight

Though little can be done once southern blight has become established within the watermelon patch, there are some ways in which home growers can help to prevent the establishment of this fungus in the soil.

Since the fungus thrives in soil that is both warm and wet, growers need to make certain only to plant in well-amended and well-draining garden beds. Working the bed deeply will also help to prevent the presence of the disease.

In addition to the removal of the infected plant parts each season, a schedule of crop rotation should be followed from one season to another.

We all know that fruits develop from blooms on our plants, and the same is, of course, true of watermelons. Watermelons grow many more blossoms than they need to produce fruit. Continue with us to learn when blossom drop is serious, when it is normal, and how to determine between the two so we can get your watermelons to grow into big, juicy fruit.

Why are Watermelons Losing Flowers?

Flowers falling off watermelon plants during the first stages of blooms are usually male flowers, not the female blossoms that produce the melons. These first blossoms are borne to pollinate the upcoming female blooms, usually in the following 10 to 14 days. So, while they will drop, watermelons losing flowers in the beginning is normal.

We want the female flowers to remain on the vine for pollination and to eventually become melons. To identify female blooms, look for shorter stems and a swollen area that will be under the flower that possibly looks like a tiny watermelon. If your female watermelon blossoms are dropping, it is likely due to poor pollination.

Ways to Prevent Flowers Falling Off Watermelon

On most varieties, each vine will support (carry) two to three melons, so you may have to remove blooms. If you opt to grow just one or two fruits on each vine, they’ll get all the plant’s energy to be bigger and sweeter.

Since we want to be in control of removing the blooms, there are a few tips and tricks to help avoid watermelon blossom drop. These include:

Pollinate the female flowers. Do this by taking a male flower, remove the flower petals and use the stamen from it to make contact with the pistil on the inside of the female flower. Brush and shake the pollen to make contact with the pistil on the female. You may also use a small paintbrush to hand pollinate the melon plants.

Add honeybee hives or pollinator plants near your growing area. Bees usually pollinate early in the morning. In cool or damp conditions, they don’t travel as far from the hive as on sunny, warm days. Locate hives as close as possible to the garden and include a number of flowering plants in and around the garden too. Bumblebees may pollinate for you as well.

Fertilize the plant as buds appear. This makes the flowers a little stronger and may encourage them to hold onto the vine for an extra day or so, while waiting for pollination. Vigorous vines produce the best flowers.

Use only high-quality transplants to get your watermelon plants started. If possible, grow a disease-resistant variety.

When you have watermelons with charcoal rot in your garden, don’t count on getting those melons to the picnic table. This fungal disease attacks many different types of cucurbits, including watermelon, usually killing the plants. If you are growing watermelons, read on for more information about charcoal rot and what to do when you see it.

What is Watermelon Charcoal Rot?

Charcoal rot in watermelons is caused by the fungus Macrophomina phaseolina. It is a fungus that lives in the soil and is very prevalent in some states, including California. It can persist for up to 12 years. The fungus that infects watermelons with charcoal rot can also infect hundreds of other plant species. In melons, the pathogen first attacks the stems near the soil a few weeks after planting. However, you won’t see symptoms until much closer to harvest.

Symptoms of Charcoal Rot in Watermelons

The first signs that you have watermelons with charcoal rot may appear late in the growing season, a couple of weeks before harvest. Look for yellowing leaves, followed by the death of crown leaves. After that, you may see other manifestations of charcoal rot in watermelons, like water-soaked lesions on the stem. The stems can ooze yellowy gum and turn dark, like charcoal. If the lesions girdle the stem, the plant will die.

Watermelon Charcoal Rot Treatment

There are lots of fungal diseases that infect your garden plants that can be treated with fungicides. Unfortunately, charcoal rot in watermelons is not one of them. Alas, there are no effective controls for the fungus. You can effectively prevent the disease by changing the way you manage your crops though. What is the preferred watermelon charcoal rot treatment? You need to understand the conditions that cause the fungus to become a problem and try to avoid them. For instance, charcoal rot fungus is a problem that increases if a melon crop is under water stress. It is entirely within a gardener’s control to prevent this from happening. Irrigating regularly and preventing water stress will go a long way to preventing charcoal rot in watermelons. It also helps to rotate your crops regularly. The incidence of the disease and its severity is most common in areas where melons are grown year after year. Rotating out your melons for a few years can be a good strategy in watermelon charcoal rot treatment.

For an early, compact, and delicious melon, it’s hard to beat Yellow Doll watermelons. As an added bonus, these melons have a unique, yellow flesh. The flavor is sweet and tasty and the fruits are a manageable size. And, you’ll get ripe, ready-to-eat watermelons long before any other varieties.

What is a Yellow Doll Melon?

Watermelon is a classic summer fruit that nearly everyone enjoys, but handling the large fruit can be difficult or impossible. With Yellow Doll watermelon plants, you get fruits that weigh no more than five to seven pounds (2.2 to 3.2 kg.), a size that anyone can manage. And, these are among the earliest of watermelons, so you can enjoy them sooner in the summer. These are also attractive melons that grow on compact vines. You’ll get medium-sized, oval watermelons that are strikingly striped in light and dark green. The rind is thin, which makes them poor for shipping or storing for very long, but for home gardens it doesn’t matter. The most noteworthy feature of Yellow Doll watermelon plants is, of course, the fact that the flesh is bright, sunny yellow. The melons taste great too, with a sweet flavor and a dense texture. You can eat these as you would any watermelon with the added bonus of being able to add a new and interesting color to fruit salads and desserts.

Growing Yellow Doll Watermelon Plants

Watermelon is best started indoors if you are working from seeds. Transplant them outdoors well after the danger of frost has passed. They definitely need full sun, so be sure you have the right spot for them in your garden. Enrich the soil first with compost and make sure it drains well. Yellow Doll watermelon care is not too labor intensive. Once you have your transplants in the ground in raised beds or hills, water them regularly. Use fertilizer a few times throughout the growing season and be ready to pick the fruits by early- to mid-July. These watermelons need just about 40 days to mature.

If you love watermelon but don’t have the family size to devour a huge melon, you’ll love Little Baby Flower watermelons. What is a Little Baby Flower watermelon? Read on to learn how to grow watermelon Little Baby Flower and about Little Baby Flower care.

What is a Little Baby Flower Watermelon?

Of the many types of watermelons, Little Baby Flower (Citrullus lanatus) falls under the category of personal sized melon. This little cutie averages 2- to 4-pounds (just under 1-2 kg.) fruit with excellent flavor. The exterior of the melon has dark and light green striping while the interior has sweet, crisp, dark pink flesh that is very high in sugar. High yielders, hybrid Little Baby Flower watermelons produce 3-5 melons per plant that are ready to harvest in about 70 days.

How to Grow Little Baby Flower Melon

Watermelons like well-draining soil with a pH of 6.5-7.5. They can be started indoors one month prior to transplanting outdoors. Watermelons love the heat, so soil temperatures should be above 70 F. (21 C.) prior to transplanting or direct sowing. To direct sow into the garden, sow 3 seeds for every 18-36 inches (45.5-91.5 cm.), about an inch (2.5 cm.) deep in full sun exposure. After the seedlings get their first set of leaves, thin to one plant per area.

Little Baby Flower Care

Watermelons need plenty of water in their early stages of growth as well as during pollination and fruit set. Quit watering one week prior to harvest to allow the sugars to concentrate. To give seedlings a jump start, use plastic mulch and row covers to keep them extra warm which will increase yields. Be sure to remove the covers when the female flowers begin to open so they can be pollinated. Keep the plants healthy and consistently watered using drip irrigation to reduce the risk of fungal disease. Use floating row covers if your area has a problem with cucumber beetles. Once harvested, Little Baby Flower melons can be stored for 2-3 weeks at 45 F. (7 C.) and a relative humidity of 85 percent.

Juicy watermelons are made up of about 92% water, hence, they require sufficient irrigation, especially when they are setting and growing fruit. For those with less access to water in arid regions, don’t despair, try growing Desert King watermelons. Desert King is a drought tolerant watermelon that still produces reliably juicy melons. Interested in learning how to grow a Desert King? The following article contains Desert King melon information for growing and care.

Desert King Melon Information

Desert King is a variety of watermelon, a member of the Citrullus family. Desert King (Citrullus lanatus) is an open-pollinated, heirloom melon with a light pea-green rind surrounding the gorgeous yellow to orange flesh. Desert King watermelons produce 20 pound (9 kg.) fruits that are resistant to sun scald. This cultivar is one of the most drought resistant varieties out there. They will also hold for a month or so on the vine after ripening and, once harvested, store very well.

How to Grow a Desert King Watermelon

Desert King watermelon plants are easy to grow. They are, however, tender plants so be sure to set them out after all chance of frost has passed for your region and your soil temperature is at least 60 degrees F. (16 C.). When growing Desert King watermelons, or really any type of watermelon, do not start the plants earlier than six weeks before they will go in the garden. Since watermelons have long tap roots, start the seeds in individual peat pots that can be planted directly into the garden so you don’t disturb the root. Plant the watermelons in well-draining soil that is rich with compost. Keep the watermelon seedlings damp but not wet.

Desert King Watermelon Care

Although Desert King is a drought-tolerant watermelon, it still needs water, especially when it is setting and growing fruit. Do not let the plants dry out completely or the fruit will be susceptible to cracking. Fruit will be ready to harvest 85 days from sowing.

Charleston Gray watermelons are huge, elongated melons, named for their greenish gray rind. The bright red fresh of this heirloom melon is sweet and juicy. Growing heirloom watermelons like Charleston Gray isn’t difficult if you can provide plenty of sunlight and warmth. Let’s learn how.

Charleston Gray History

According to Cambridge University Press, Charleston Gray watermelon plants were developed in 1954 by C.F. Andrus of the United States Department of Agriculture. Charleston Gray and several other cultivars were developed as part of a breeding program devised to create disease-resistant melons. Charleston Gray watermelon plants were widely grown by commercial growers for four decades and remain popular among home gardeners.

How to Grow Charleston Gray Melons

Here are some helpful tips on Charleston Gray watermelon care in the garden: Plant Charleston Gray watermelons directly in the garden in early summer, when the weather is consistently warm and soil temperatures have reached 70 to 90 degrees F. (21-32 C.). Alternatively, start seeds indoors three to four weeks before the last expected frost. Harden the seedlings for a week before transplanting them outdoors. Watermelons require full sunlight and rich, well-drained soil. Dig a generous amount of compost or well-rotted manure into the soil before planting. Plant two or three melon seeds ½ inch (13 mm.) deep in mounds. Space the mounds 4 to 6 feet (1-1.5 m.) apart. Thin the seedlings to one healthy plant per mound when the seedlings are about 2 inches (5 cm.) tall. Mulch the soil around the plants when the seedlings are about 4 inches (10 cm.) tall. A couple inches (5 cm.) of mulch will discourage weeds while keeping the soil moist and warm. Keep the soil consistently moist (but not soggy) until the melons are about the size of a tennis ball. Thereafter, water only when the soil is dry. Water with a soaker hose or drip irrigation system. Avoid overhead watering, if possible. Stop watering about a week before harvest, watering only if the plants appear wilted. (Keep in mind that wilting is normal on hot days.) Control growth of weeds, otherwise, they will rob the plants of moisture and nutrients. Watch for pests, including aphids and cucumber beetles. Harvest Charleston Gray melons when the rinds turn a dull shade of green and the part of the melon touching the soil, previously straw yellow to greenish white, turns creamy yellow. Cut melons from the vine with a sharp knife. Leave about an inch (2.5 cm.) of stem attached, unless you plan to use the melon immediately.

To many folks, watermelon is THE thirst quenching fruit on a hot, summer day. Nothing quenches a parched body like a huge slice of cold, ruby red melon dripping with juice, except perhaps a wedge of cold, Yellow Buttercup watermelon. What is a Buttercup watermelon? If you’re interested in learning about growing Yellow Buttercup watermelons, then read on to find out about Yellow Buttercup watermelon care and other interesting Yellow Buttercup watermelon info.

What is a Buttercup Watermelon?

As the name suggests, the flesh of the Yellow Buttercup watermelon is a lemony yellow while the rind is a medium green tone striped with thin green lines. This variety of watermelon produces round fruit that weighs between 14 and 16 pounds (6-7 kg.) each. The flesh is crisp and extremely sweet. Yellow Buttercup watermelon is a seedless melon hybridized by Dr. Warren Barham and introduced in 1999. This warm season melon can be grown in USDA zones 4 and warmer and will need a pollinator, such as Side Kick or Accomplice, both of which flower early and continuously. Plan on one pollinator per each three seedless Yellow Buttercups planted.

How to Grow a Yellow Buttercup Melon

When growing Yellow Buttercup watermelons, plan on sowing seeds in the spring in an area of full sun in fertile, well-draining soil. Sow the seeds to a depth of 1 inch (2.5 cm.) and spaced about 8 to 10 feet (2-3 m.) apart. Seeds should germinate within 4 to 14 days provided soil temperatures are 65 to 70 degrees F. (18-21 C.).

Yellow Buttercup Watermelon Care

Yellow Buttercup melons need consistent moisture until the fruit is about the size of a tennis ball. Thereafter, reduce watering and only water when the soil feels dry when you push your index finger down into it. A week before the fruit is ripe and ready to harvest, stop watering entirely. This will allow the sugars in the flesh to condense, creating even sweeter melons. Do not water melons overhead, as this can cause foliar disease; only water at the base of the plant around the root system. Buttercup melons are ready to harvest 90 days from sowing. Harvest Yellow Buttercup melons when the rind is a dull green striped with dark green stripes. Give the melon a good thump. You should hear a dull thud which means the melon is ready to harvest. Yellow Buttercup watermelons can be stored for up to three weeks in a cool, dark area.

If you have plenty of space in your garden, Crimson Sweet watermelons are a delicious and attractive addition. What is a Crimson Sweet watermelon? It is one of the best tasting of these large melons and has many disease resistant traits. This makes growing Crimson Sweet melons easy, even for novice gardeners. The sweet treats at the end of the season are just one of the many benefits of Crimson Sweet in gardens.

What is a Crimson Sweet Watermelon?

Who doesn't like fresh, juicy watermelon? Growing your own means you have fresh fruit at hand whenever you crave the melon's sweet flavor. Bright red and firmly fleshed, Crimson Sweet in gardens require room to sprawl but bring a taste of summer to your table fresh from the melon patch. Some tips on how to grow Crimson Sweet watermelons will have your family enjoying them within 80 days in proper growing conditions. This variety was introduced by Kansas State University in 1963 and has become a commercial favorite which ships and stores well. Crimson Sweet develops large 15 to 25 pound (7-11 kg.) fruits with lovely dark and light green striping and deeply red flesh. The melons are oval with blunt ends and ripen just as the summer heat is beginning to sizzle. The vines are 6 to 8 feet (about 2 m.), sprawling and rambling over anything in their path. The melons are resistant to fusarium wilt and anthracnose, two common fungal diseases of the garden that do not have a cure. These traits and others make Crimson Sweet watermelon care a much more breezy affair than varieties without resistance.

How to Grow Crimson Sweet Watermelons

Select a bright, sunny location for growing Crimson Sweet watermelons. Watermelons grow well on hills which offer warmer soil, deeper root space, and irrigation opportunities that keep moisture off the leaves. Work soil at the sight deeply and incorporate plenty of organic matter. In short season zones, start seeds indoors three to four weeks before the last expected frost. Install the plants 2 to 3 feet apart (61-91 cm.) in rows spaced 6 to 8 feet (about 2 m.). If transplanting indoor starts, harden them off for a week before planting in the bed. Side dress with compost. In northern gardens, use row covers early in the season to help keep temperatures warm, but remove them when flowers begin to appear.

Crimson Sweet Watermelon Care

Use soaker hoses around the mounds to water roots and avoid moisture on the leaves which can cause a variety of fungal diseases. Keep plants consistently moist until fruits begin to appear. Then water only when soil is dry and reduce watering as fruits begin to ripen to concentrate sugar in the melons. Row covers or pyrethrin based insecticides will protect the plants from many flying insect pests. Harvest fruits when the rind changes from bright to dull green. Rap on fruits to check for a low-pitched tone. The fruit will keep two or three weeks unrefrigerated but will last longer in a cool place such as the basement.

When asked to picture a watermelon, most people have a pretty clear image in their heads: green rind, red flesh. There might be more seeds in some than in others, but the color scheme is usually the same. Except that it doesn’t need to be! There are actually several yellow watermelon varieties on the market. While they may not be as popular, the gardeners who grow them often declare them to be even better than their red counterparts. One such winner is the Yellow Baby watermelon. Keep reading to learn more about Yellow Baby melon care and how to grow Yellow Baby watermelons.

Watermelon ‘Yellow Baby’ Info

What is a Yellow Baby watermelon? This variety of watermelon has thin skin and bright yellow flesh. It was developed in the middle of the 20th century by the Taiwanese horticulturist Chen Wen-yu. Known as the Watermelon King, Chen personally developed 280 varieties of watermelon, not to mention the countless other flowers and vegetables he bred over his long career. At the time of his death in 2012, he was responsible for one fourth of all the watermelon seeds in the world. He developed the Yellow Baby (marketed in Chinese as ‘Yellow Orchid’) by crossing a female American Midget melon with a male Chinese melon. The resulting fruit arrived in the U.S. in the 1970's where it was met with some suspicion but ultimately won the hearts of all who tasted it.

How to Grow a Yellow Baby Watermelon

Growing Yellow Baby melons is similar to growing most melons. The vines are very cold sensitive and seeds should be started indoors well ahead of the last frost in climates with short summers. The vines reach maturity 74 to 84 days after planting. The fruits themselves measure about 9 by 8 inches (23 x 20 cm.) and weigh about 8 to 10 pounds (3.5-4.5 kg.). The flesh is, of course, yellow, very sweet, and crisp. According to many gardeners, it is even sweeter than the average red watermelon. Yellow Baby has a relatively short shelf life (4-6 days) and should be eaten right away after it’s picked, although I don’t think this would really be an issue considering how good it tastes.

Watermelons are a summer delight, and none are quite as tasty as those you grow in the home garden. Growing Jubilee melons is a great way to provide fresh fruit, even if you’ve been plagued by disease when growing melons before. Continue reading for detailed directions on how to grow a watermelon that will impress your family.

Jubilee Watermelon Info

Jubilee watermelons are disease resistant, making it less likely that fusarium wilt will infect your produce. Jubilee melon plants can reach 40 lbs. (18 kg.) in full maturity, but it takes a while for them to reach this point. Their extended growing season can take as long as 90 days to maturity for the sweetest taste. Jubilee watermelon info outlines a process of seeding and pinching blossoms that helps develop that sought-after taste.

Growing Jubilee Melons

When growing Jubilee melons, you may direct seed into mounds in the outdoor garden or start seed indoors three to four weeks before the last frost date in your area. The way you start seeds depends on the length of your growing season, as you’ll need the summer heat for the development of Jubilee melon plants. Plant five or six seeds into each outdoor mound. You’ll later thin them out and leave the healthiest two remaining in each hill. For an earlier harvest or for those who need to take advantage of the hot days of a short growing season, start seeds indoors. Use flats or small pots, planting three seeds to each, ¼ inch (6.4 mm.) deep. Jubilee watermelon info says to provide heat during germination of 80-90 degrees F. (27-32 C.). Also, a little more water is necessary until you see the plants peek through. Use a heat mat, if possible, to speed germination. Seeds will sprout in 3-10 days. At this point, lower temps to the 70’s (21- 26 C.) and decrease to light watering. Thin to one plant per pot. When true leaves develop, limit watering a little more, but don’t let the seedlings dry out entirely. Begin gradually exposing the plant to outdoor conditions, a few hours per day. Plant outside when temperatures warm and soil is near 70 degrees F. (21 C.). Transplant two seedlings to each hill, keeping soil from the container in place to avoid disturbing the roots. To help keep the ground warm, use black mulch and fabric row covers. Remember, Jubilee melon care includes providing heat in any way possible. Remove row covers when blooms begin. Plant melons in well-draining soil. Amend the soil with finished compost to increase the nutrient and drainage value. Water regularly and fertilize with an organic product low in nitrogen, but high in phosphorous. Pinch early developing flowers. Allow flowers to remain when several of them bloom at once. Continue watering and fertilizing as melons grow. The amount of water depends on how quickly your soil dries out. Decrease watering when fruit stops growing. Your jubilee watermelons are ready for harvest when the skin on the bottom turns from white to yellow, and vine tendrils near the stem turn brown.

Juicy, homegrown watermelons are a long-time favorite in the edible summer garden. Though open pollinated varieties are popular with many growers, the amount of seeds within the sweet flesh may make them difficult to eat. Planting seedless hybrid varieties offer a solution to this dilemma. Read on to learn about the watermelon ‘Millionaire’ variety.

What is a 'Millionaire' Watermelon?

‘Millionaire’ is a seedless hybrid watermelon. The seeds for these watermelons are created by cross-pollinating two plants which are incompatible due to the number of chromosomes present. This incompatibility causes the "offspring" (seeds) of the cross pollination to be sterile. Any fruit yielded from the sterile plant will not produce seeds, therefore, giving us wonderful seedless melons. Millionaire watermelon plants produce 15 to 22 pound (7-10 kg.) fruits with reddish pink flesh. Hard, green striped rinds make the melons an excellent option for commercial growers. On average, plants require 90 days to reach maturity.

How to Grow a Millionaire Melon Plant

Growing Millionaire watermelons is very similar to growing other watermelon varieties. However, there are some key differences to take into consideration. For instance, seeds for seedless watermelons are generally more expensive, as more work is required to create them. Additionally, seedless varieties of watermelon require a different "pollinator" variety to produce fruit. So according to Millionaire watermelon info, growers must plant at least two types of watermelon in the garden in order to ensure a crop of seedless melons– a seedless variety and one which produces seeds. Like other melons, 'Millionaire' seeds require warm temperatures to germinate. Minimum soil temperatures of at least 70 degrees F. (21 C.) are required for germination. When all chance of frost has passed and plants have reached 6 to 8 inches (15-20 cm.) long, they are ready to be transplanted into the garden in well-amended soil. At this point, the plants may be cared for like any other watermelon plant.

Watermelon root rot is a fungal disease caused by the pathogen Monosporascus cannonballus. Also known as watermelon vine decline, it can cause massive crop loss in affected watermelon plants. Learn more about the devastating disease in this article.

Root and Vine Rot of Watermelon Crops

This disease is prevalent in hot climates and has been known to cause massive crop loss in the United States in Texas, Arizona, and California. Watermelon cannonballus disease is also a problem in Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Brazil, Spain, Italy, Israel, Iran, Libya, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, India, Japan, and Taiwan. Watermelon vine decline is generally a problem in sites with clay or silt soil. The symptoms of monosporascus root and vine rot of watermelon often go unnoticed until a few weeks before harvest. Early symptoms are stunted plants and yellowing of the plant’s old crown leaves. The yellowing and dropping of foliage will quickly move along the vine. Within five to ten days of the first yellow leaves, an infected plant may be completely defoliated. Fruits may suffer from sunburn without the protective foliage. Brown soggy streaking or lesions may be visible at the base of infected plants. Fruits on infected plants may also be stunted or drop prematurely. When dug up, infected plants will have small, brown, rotted roots.

Watermelon Cannonballus Disease Control

Watermelon cannonballus disease is soil borne. The fungus can build up in the soil year after year in sites where cucurbits are regularly planted. Three to four year crop rotation on cucurbits can help control the disease. Soil fumigation is also an effective control method. Fungicides delivered by deep irrigation in early spring may also help. However, fungicides will not help already infected plants. Usually, gardeners are still able to harvest some fruit from infected plants, but then plants should be dug up and destroyed to prevent more spread. Many new disease resistant varieties of watermelon are now available.

Watermelon bacterial rind necrosis sounds like an awful disease you could spot on a melon from a mile away, but no such luck. Bacterial rind necrosis disease usually is visible only when you cut open the melon. What is watermelon rind necrosis? What causes watermelon rind necrosis? If you’d like more information about watermelon bacterial rind necrosis, this article will help.

What is Watermelon Rind Necrosis?

Watermelon bacterial rind necrosis is a disease that causes discolored areas in the rind of the melon. The first watermelon rind necrosis symptoms are hard, discolored rind areas. Overtime, they grow and form extensive dead-cell areas on the rind. These usually do not touch the melon flesh.

What Causes Watermelon Rind Necrosis?

Experts believe that watermelon rind necrosis symptoms are caused by bacteria. They think that the bacteria are naturally present in the watermelon. For reasons they do not understand, the bacteria causes symptom development. Plant pathologists have identified different bacteria from necrotic areas in the rind. That’s why the disease is often referred to as bacterial rind necrosis. However, no bacteria have been identified as the one that causes the problems. Currently, scientists conjecture that the normal watermelon bacteria are affected by a stressful environmental condition. This, they speculate, triggers a hypersensitive response in the fruit rind. At that point, bacteria living there die, causing nearby cells to die. However, no scientists have verified this in experiments. The evidence that they have found suggests that water stress may be involved. Since the necrosis does not cause watermelon rind necrosis symptoms on the outside of the melons, it is usually the consumer or home growers who discover the problem. They cut into the melon and find the disease present.

Bacterial Rind Necrosis Disease Control

The disease has been reported in Florida, Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, and Hawaii. It has not become a severe annual problem and shows up only sporadically. Since it is difficult to identify fruits that have been infected by watermelon bacterial rind necrosis before cutting into them, the crop cannot be culled. Even a few diseased melons can cause an entire crop to be taken off the market. Unfortunately, no control measures exist.

There's a fungus among us! Myrothecium leaf spot of watermelon is a mouthful to say but, luckily, it does minimal damage to those sweet, juicy fruits. It is the leaves that take the brunt of the fungi's attack.

Watermelon Myrothecium leaf spot is a fairly new disease, only recognized in 2003, and is also rather rare. Just like most fungi, this character needs moisture to grow and cause trouble.

Symptoms in Watermelon with Myrothecium

Korean plant growers first spotted Myrothecium on watermelon plants growing in a greenhouse. The disease has rarely been observed in field grown melons, probably due to the humid conditions in the enclosed plants.

The disease is a leaf and stem rot fungus that attacks foliage first and can progress to the stem over time. It resembles many other fungal diseases, such as damping off in seedlings or Alternaria blight. The diagnosis may be difficult due to the disease's similarity to many other fungal problems.

Symptoms begin on stems and appear as dark brown lesions. These will coalesce into larger spots. A very close look may reveal the black spores on the surface of the spots. The leaves will also become infected with necrotic black to tan irregular spots.

Once the diseased tissue has produced fruiting bodies, it will break away from the rest of the plant, leaving shot holes in leaves.

In watermelon with Myrothecium, the fruit is unaffected. The development of seedlings and young plants is halted and no fruit will be produced, but on mature plants, growth may slow in fruit but no lesions will occur.

Watermelon Myrothecium Leaf Spot Causes

Humid, rainy weather contributes to most fungal organism's growth. Myrothecium on watermelon has similar requirements. Warm, wet weather conditions favor the development of the fungus Myrothecium roridum.

Overhead spraying or excessive rains that keep leaves consistently wet are ideal conditions for the development of the spores.

The fungus is harbored on host plants and in soil, especially in areas that were previously cropped by melons. In addition to melons, the fungus seems to inhabit soybeans. Poor sanitation practices and favorable weather conditions are the biggest contributing factors to the disease. It does not appear to attack seeds of the fruit.

Control of Myrothecium

• The easiest way to avoid this disease is by crop rotation since the fungus is harbored in decaying pieces of melon plants.
• Clean up the sight at the end of the season and compost any leftover plant material.
• Avoid overhead watering during periods of the evening when leaves will not dry completely, especially when conditions are humid and warm.
• Apply copper fungicide by spraying leaves early in the season when seedlings have at least two sets of true leaves and again just as flowering commences.
• Install plants far enough apart that adequate circulation is possible.

Good care of plants and removal of affected leaves can also minimize the spread of Myrothecium leaf spot of melons.

Watermelon gummy stem blight is a serious disease that afflicts all major cucurbits. It has been found in these crops since the early 1900s. Gummy stem blight of watermelons and other cucurbits refers to the foliar and stem infecting phase of the disease and black rot refers to the fruit rotting phase. Keep reading to find out what causes gummy stem blight and symptoms of the disease.

What Causes Gummy Stem Blight?

Watermelon gummy stem blight is caused by the fungus Didymella bryoniae. The disease is both seed and soil-borne. It can be present in or on infested seed, or overwinter for a year and a half on infected crop residue. Periods of high temperature, moisture and humidity foster the disease – 75 F. (24 C.), relative humidity over 85% and leaf wetness from 1-10 hours. Wounds on the plant either caused by mechanical equipment or insect feeding along with powdery mildew infection predispose the plant to infection.

Symptoms of Watermelons with Gummy Stem Blight

The first symptoms of gummy stem blight of watermelons appear as round black, wrinkled lesions on young leaves and dark sunken areas on the stems. As the disease progresses, gummy stem blight symptoms increase. Irregular brown to black blotches appear between leaf veins, gradually expanding and resulting in the death of the affected foliage. Older stems at the crown near a leaf petiole or tendril split and ooze. Gummy stem blight does not directly affect the melons, but can indirectly affect the size and quality of the fruit. If the infection is spread to the fruit as black rot, the infection may be evident in the garden or develop later on during storage.

Treatment for Watermelons with Gummy Stem Blight

As mentioned, gummy stem blight develops from contaminated seed or infected transplants, so vigilance regarding infection is necessary and use of disease free seed. If any sign of the disease appears to be present on seedlings, discard them and any sown nearby that may have been infected. Remove or till under any crop refuse as soon after harvest as possible. Grow powdery mildew resistant crops if possible. Fungicides for controlling other fungal diseases may protect from infection, although a high resistance factor to benomyl and thiophanate-methyl has occurred in some areas.

Alternaria leaf blight is a common fungal disease of plants in the cucurbit species, which includes gourds, melons, and squash. Watermelons are specifically affected by this disease. In this article we will take a closer look at the symptoms of watermelon Alternaria leaf spot, as well as disease control strategies for Alternaria of watermelons.

Recognizing Alternaria of Watermelon Leaves

Alternaria leaf blight is caused by the fungal agent Alternaria cucumerina, whose spores are carried on wind and water, when weather conditions become favorable for its spore growth. These favorable conditions are usually late spring to midsummer when cool, wet spring weather quickly turns to warm, humid, summer weather. Leaf blight of watermelons can overwinter in garden debris. As spring or early summer temperatures rise steadily between 68 and 90 degrees F. (20-32 C.), the fungus begins to produce reproductive spores which are carried from plant to plant by the breeze or splashing rain. These spores have a particularly easy time accumulating on and infecting plant tissues that are damp from dew or humidity. Symptoms of watermelon Alternaria leaf spot will begin as small gray to brown spots on the older leaves of watermelon plants, which are the common initial symptoms of many fungal diseases. However, with Alternaria leaf blight, these first small lesions oftentimes have a light green to yellow, water-soaked ring around the spot, which can appear halo-like. The foliar lesions of leaf blight of watermelon plants can grow to just under a half inch (1 cm.) in diameter. As they grow, the center and “halo” grow darker and more concentric rings form, giving the lesions a bullseye or target-like appearance, which contributes to this disease’s common name, target leaf spot. Infected leaves will wilt and curl upward like a cup, before withering away.

How to Manage Watermelons with Alternaria Leaf Spot

Alternaria of watermelons rarely causes lesions to form on the fruit, but if it does, they are usually brown to gray sunken lesions. Rapid defoliation is usually the main cause of fruit damage by Alternaria leaf blight. Without their protective canopy of dense watermelon leaves, fruit may succumb to sunscald and wind damage. Oftentimes, fruit can still be harvested from infected plants if gardeners use early maturing varieties or provide the fruit with some sun protection, such as garden shade canopies or properly timed shading companion plants. Prevention is the best way to control Alternaria of watermelons. After an outbreak has occurred in a garden bed, all garden debris should be cleaned out and disposed of thoroughly. Garden tools should also be sanitized. It is then recommended that you rotate watermelons or other susceptible cucurbits out of that location for two years. Crop rotation in vegetable gardens is always a good way to control the re-occurrence of diseases that affect specific host plants. When leaf blight of watermelon plants is present on fruiting plants in midsummer, biweekly applications of fungicides may control the disease enough to make it to harvest. Fungicides which contain azoxystrobin, boscalid, chlorothalonil, copper hydroxide, or potassium bicarbonate have shown effectiveness in controlling watermelon Alternaria leaf spot when used regularly and in combination with proper sanitary practices.

Growing your own fruit can be an empowering and delicious success, or it can be a frustrating disaster if things go wrong. Fungal diseases such as diplodia stem end rot on watermelons can be especially disheartening as the fruits you’ve patiently grown all summer suddenly seem to rot right off the vine. Continue reading to learn more about recognizing and treating stem end rot of watermelon plants.

Watermelon Diplodia Rot

Watermelon diplodia is a fungal disorder, spread by Lasiodiplodia theobromine fungi, that generally results in post-harvest crop loss of watermelon, cantaloupe, and honeydew. Symptoms appear from mid to late summer and can run rampant in humid semi-tropic to tropical locations, when temperatures steadily linger between 77 and 86 degrees F. (25-30 C.). At 50 degrees F. (10 C.) or below, fungal growth goes dormant. Symptoms of watermelons with stem end rot may first appear as discolored or wilted leaves. Upon closer inspection, browning and/or drying of the stem ends is apparent. Fruit may develop water-soaked rings around the stem end, which gradually grow into large, dark, sunken lesions. The rind of watermelons with stem rot is usually thin, dark, and soft. As the stem ends rot, dark black patches may form in the decayed lesions. This disease will still grow and spread in post-harvest storage. Proper sanitary practices can reduce the spread of fungal diseases. Infected fruits should be removed from the plant as soon as they are spotted to redirect energy to healthy fruit and reduce the spread of diplodia stem end rot. Infected fruits may just fall off the plant, leaving the stem still hanging on the plant and a dark rotted hole in the fruit.

Managing Stem End Rot of Watermelon Fruits

Calcium deficiencies contribute to a plant’s vulnerability to diplodia stem end rot. In melons, calcium helps build thick, firm rinds while also regulating salt and activating available potassium. Cucurbits, such as watermelon, tend to have high calcium demands and become more susceptible to diseases and disorders when this nutrient need is not met. During high temperatures, plants can lose calcium from transpiration. This oftentimes occurs as fruit is setting and the result is weak, sickly fruit. Applying calcium nitrate regularly through the growing season is recommended for healthy watermelon plants. Watermelon diplodia rot is more prevalent in warm, humid climates where it does not get killed off by winter frosts, but in some climates, it can overwinter in garden debris, fallen leaves, stems, or fruit. As always, thorough garden sanitation between crops and utilizing crop rotation will help prevent the spread or reoccurrence of stem end rot of watermelon plants. Harvested fruits should be checked regularly for rotting near the stem and discarded if the disease is present. Tools and storage equipment should also be washed with bleach and water.

Anthracnose is a destructive fungal disease that can cause serious problems in cucurbits, particularly in watermelon crops. If it gets out of hand, the disease can be very damaging and result in the loss of fruit or even vine death. Keep reading to learn more about how to control watermelon anthracnose.

Watermelon Anthracnose Info

Anthracnose is a disease caused by the fungus Colletotrichum. Symptoms of watermelon anthracnose can vary and affect any or all aboveground parts of the plant. This can include small yellow spots on leaves that spread and darken to black. If the weather is damp, fungal spores will be visible as pink or orange clusters in the middle of these spots. If the weather is dry, the spores will be gray. If the spots spread too far, the leaves will die. These spots can also appear as stem lesions. Additionally, the spots can spread to the fruit, where they appear as sunken, wet patches that turn from pink to black with time. Small infected fruit may die.

How to Control Watermelon Anthracnose

Anthracnose of watermelons thrives and spreads most easily in moist, warm conditions. The fungal spores can be carried in seeds. It can also overwinter in infected cucurbit material. Because of this, diseased watermelon vines should be removed and destroyed and not allowed to remain in the garden. A large part of treating watermelon anthracnose involves prevention. Plant certified disease free seed, and rotate watermelon plantings with non-cucurbits every three years. It’s also a good idea to apply preventative fungicide to existent vines. Fungicides should be sprayed every 7 to 10 days as soon as the plants begin to spread. If the weather is dry, the spraying can be reduced to once every 14 days. It’s possible for the disease to infect harvested fruit through wounds, so make sure to handle watermelons carefully when picking and storing them to prevent damage.

Powdery mildew in watermelons is one of the more common illnesses that affect this popular fruit. It is also common in other cucurbits: pumpkins, squash, and cucumber. You can use management strategies to control or prevent an infection or apply fungicides to treat affected plants.

About Watermelon Powdery Mildew

The presence of powdery leaves on watermelon plants is the most common sign of this fungal infection, and it is likely the first symptom you will notice in your garden. These are colonies of fungus, and they infest the leaves but rarely grow on the actual fruit. In addition to the white, powdery substance, you may also see yellow spots on your watermelon leaves. While the fungus that causes watermelon powdery mildew does not attack the fruits, the damage it does to leaves can impact your fruit harvest. The leaves can become damaged enough to fall off, which leads to smaller fruit. The fruit may also get sunburned because of lessened leaf coverage.

Treating Watermelon with Powdery Mildew

Conditions that promote infection and that make it more likely to spread include warmth, shade, and moisture. A lack of airflow and a lot of shade around and between plants helps the infection take hold, so planting your watermelons with plenty of space can help prevent powdery mildew. There are no resistant varieties of watermelon, so making sure conditions are not too crowded or soggy is important for prevention. You can also take steps to avoid infection in later-growing cucurbits, like winter squash and pumpkin, by planting them upwind of infected watermelons. The spores of the mildew travel and infect new plants through the air. If the infection takes hold in your watermelon patch, you can treat it with fungicides. Early and appropriate use of fungicides can help you save your crop for the year, or at least minimize losses. Find the right fungicide at your local nursery, but keep in mind that powdery mildew can become resistant so use two different fungicides in rotation.

A significant threat to your watermelons might just be a microscopic roundworm. Yes, I’m referring to nematodes of watermelon. Watermelons afflicted with nematodes yellow, become stunted, and generally decline. Watermelons and other cucurbits are primarily susceptible to root nematodes but can also be damaged by sting nematodes. How do you go about controlling watermelon nematodes? The following article contains information about watermelon nematode treatment.

Symptoms of Watermelons with Nematodes

Nematodes live in the soil and feed on the roots of plants, reducing their ability to absorb water and nutrients and leading to a general decline in their health and productivity. Not only does nematode feeding weaken the plant, but it can also predispose plants to fungal or bacterial disease or transmit viral disease. In watermelons with nematode damage, leaf chlorosis is evident and leaves may be stunted and wilted. Roots may form galls where the nematodes hide, feed, and reproduce. In large watermelon patches, nematodes of watermelon may only afflict a portion of the field, leaving some plants unscathed. Depending upon the type of nematode feeding, yields may be extensive but vary depending upon species. In the case of watermelons, root nematodes rarely cause damage in areas that have had long grass growing rotations. Thus, in soil where nematode host plants have grown in the last three to five years, the incidence of nematodes of watermelon rises.

Watermelon Nematode Treatment

Nematodes are notoriously difficult to control, so how do you go about controlling watermelon nematodes? Since they are microscopic, it is a good idea to have soil and root tissue samples tested to determine if nematodes are the cause of symptomatic plants. Testing needs to be done before planting since the nematodes become established once in the watermelon patch. Of course, if planting has already occurred and symptoms appear to indicate nematodes, a quick test for root knot nematodes is to look at the roots of the plant. Root knot nematodes cause galls to form on roots and are readily evident if they are the culprit. Management of areas infested with nematodes includes crop rotation with less susceptible crops or resistant varieties. Also, pre-plant nematicide treatments can be applied. Most nematicides are soil applied and incorporated into the top 3 to 6 inches (8-15 cm.) of soil. They have limited residual activity and are often used in conjunction with other cultural or chemical pest control. Both of these management practices are just that, management. They will help to reduce the nematode population and improve crop production but not rid the area entirely of the nematodes.

Fresh watermelon right from your garden is such a treat in the summer. Unfortunately, your crop may be ruined by belly rot. Belly rot in watermelons is so disappointing, but there are steps you can take to prevent and control this damaging infection.

What Causes Watermelon Belly Rot?

When the bottom of watermelon is rotting, the fruit is probably suffering from a fungal infection. There are a few species of fungus that can cause this problem, including Pythium aphanidermatum, Rhizoctonia and Sclerotium rolfsii. These fungi are more likely to cause a problem during hot weather, humid weather, and after a lot of rain. You may also be more likely to see it in your watermelon patch if your soil doesn’t drain well.

Symptoms of Belly Rot in Watermelons

Watermelons rotting on the vine from belly rot will first show signs on the underside of the fruit that is resting on the ground. The area of the watermelon affected will begin to look water-soaked. It will then begin to sink in, and you’ll see a white fungus. If you cut into the fruit, the rind may be brown or black.

Preventing and Treating Watermelon Belly Rot

Treating a watermelon already rotting isn’t possible, although you can cut around the rotten part. The best way to avoid belly rot is to prevent it from occurring. Give your watermelons the best possible conditions to prevent the fungal infection. This means planting in areas of the garden with soil that drains adequately if possible.

Other preventative measures you can take include keeping the watermelon off the ground as they grow and develop. 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.

Taking these steps is especially important if you have a lot of rain or if the weather is consistently moist and humid and your soil isn’t draining.

Watermelons are a fun crop to grow, especially with children who will love the tasty fruits of their labor. However, it can be discouraging for gardeners of any age when disease strikes, and our hard work does not pay off. Watermelons can be susceptible to many disease and insect problems, sometimes both. One such condition both disease and insect related is squash leaf curl on watermelons or watermelon leaf curl.

Watermelon Leaf Curl Symptoms

Watermelon leaf curl, also known as squash leaf curl or watermelon curly mottle, is a viral disease that is spread from plant to plant by the saliva and piercing mouthparts of the insect vectors whiteflies. Whiteflies are tiny, winged insects that feed on the sap of many vegetable and ornamental plants. As they feed, they inadvertently spread diseases. The whiteflies thought to be responsible for spreading watermelon curl are Bemisia tabaci, which are native to desert areas of the southwestern United States and Mexico. Outbreaks of watermelons with squash leaf curl virus are mainly a problem in California, Arizona, and Texas. The disease has also been seen in Central America, Egypt, The Middle East, and southeastern Asia. Watermelon leaf curl symptoms are crumpled, wrinkled, or curled foliage, with yellow mottling around the leaf veins. New growth may grow distorted or curl upwards. Infected plants may be stunted and produce little or no fruit. Blossoms and fruits that are produced may also grow stunted or distorted. Younger plants are more susceptible to this disease and may quickly dieback. Older plants show some resilience and may even seem to grow out of the disease as they produce normal fruit and curling, and mottling may disappear. However, once infected, the plants stay infected. Though plants may seem to recover and produce harvestable fruit, the plants should be dug up and destroyed immediately after harvesting to prevent further spread of the disease.

How to Treat Watermelons with Squash Leaf Curl Virus

There is no known cure for watermelons with squash leaf curl virus. The disease is more prevalent in midsummer to fall crops of watermelons, as this is when whitefly populations are the highest. Insecticides, traps, and crop covers can be employed to control whiteflies. Systemic insecticides are more effective in controlling whiteflies and the spread of watermelon leaf curl virus than insecticidal soaps and sprays. However, any insecticide can potentially harm natural predators of whiteflies, such as lacewings, minute pirate bugs, and lady beetles. Infected watermelon plants with squash leaf curl virus should be dug up and destroyed to prevent the spread of this disease.

Fusarium wilt of watermelon is an aggressive fungal disease that spreads from spores in the soil. Infected seeds are often initially to blame, but once fusarium wilt is established, it can be transmitted by anything that moves the soil, including wind, water, animals, and people. What can you do about watermelons with fusarium wilt? Can the disease be controlled or treated? Let’s consider how to manage fusarium wilt on watermelons.

Symptoms of Fusarium Wilt on Watermelons

Fusarium wilt of watermelon is a specific disease that can’t be transmitted to other plants, including cantaloupe, cucumbers, or others in the same plant family. Although infection occurs when spring weather is cool and damp, fusarium wilt can show up on the plant at any stage of growth, any time during the growing season. Mature plants are better able to handle the disease than seedlings, which often collapse. In its early stages, fusarium wilt of watermelon is evidenced by stunted growth and wilting that shows up during the heat of the afternoon, rebounding in the cool of evening. As the disease progresses, wilt becomes permanent. Diseased leaves turn yellow or dull green, often becoming brown, dry, and brittle. The infection, which enters through the roots, usually takes over entire plants but may be limited to one side. If you break or cut a stem, fusarium is easy to spot by the brown vascular tissues within. After the plant wilts, you’ll see masses of tiny spores on the dead vines. In some cases, you may not notice watermelons with fusarium wilt until the hot days of summer, especially when plants are stressed by drought. Any melons that develop are abnormally small.

Watermelon Fusarium Treatment

Watermelon fusarium wilt is difficult to manage and, currently, there are no effective fungicides for watermelon fusarium. Treatment involves careful prevention, sanitation, and maintenance, including the following:

• Plant disease-free seeds or transplants.
• Look for fusarium-resistant tomato varieties. No variety is 100 percent free of risk, but some are more resistant than others.
• Practice crop rotation. Don’t plant watermelon in an infected area for at least five to ten years; the disease can live in the soil indefinitely.
• Clean garden tools before moving to an uninfected area.
• Destroy infected plant matter by burning or discarding in sealed plastic bags. Never place infected debris in your compost bin.

Watermelon mosaic virus is actually quite pretty, but infected plants may produce less fruit and what they do develop is malformed and discolored. The damaging disease is introduced by a tiny insect so small they are difficult to see with the naked eye. These little troublemakers can cause serious adverse effects in watermelon crops. Here are some tricks on recognizing the disease and minimizing its damage.

Diagnosing Watermelon Plants with Mosaic Virus

Watermelon leaf mosaic disease stems from Potyviris, a common virus in cucurbits. The disease symptoms are different among the squash, melons, gourds, and even wild cucurbits that it infects. Peas and alfalfa are also affected. Mosaic virus of watermelon shows up on the leaves initially but persists to spread to the stems and fruit. Effective control can only be achieved by a gardener's vigilance and good cultural practices. The first signs of infection are yellowing of the leaves and marginal chlorosis. The yellowing is most often at the leaf veins and edges and is irregular, resulting in a characteristic mosaic form. Young leaves deform and distort. Leaves are smaller than usual and have blister-like regions. If any fruit form, they are dwarfed, discolored, and may have mottling and a warty appearance. The flavor is not significantly affected but the marketability of the fruit is diminished. Since less fruit form, crop sizes are greatly reduced. Additionally, the disease spreads easily and can affect many other crops.

Controlling Mosaic Virus of Watermelon

Treating watermelon mosaic virus can be tricky, but the first step is recognizing the problem. It also helps to know how the disease is transmitted. It is only moved into plants through feeding activities of several species of aphid or from leaf miners. The infection is only transmissible for a few hours but during high feeding time, insects can infect a host of plants. The virus can also overwinter in seed or host weeds. Plants installed in the later period of the season are more greatly affected because insect numbers are high. The most important management strategy is cleanliness. Remove all old debris and keep manual and mechanical tools sanitized. Crop rotation is also a recognized method for minimizing the incidence of the disease. Keep the area free of weeds, especially wild cousins of the sweet potato, which can harbor the virus. Remove and destroy infected plants to prevent the spread of the disease. Insect control is essential. Use insect barriers where applicable. Some gardeners swear by a mulch of reflective silver plastic around the plants. Apparently, the insects do not like the shine, but it is only effective until vines and leaves cover it up. Insecticides are not useful as the insect has time to transmit the virus before it dies.

Damping off is a problem that can affect many different species of plants. Specifically affecting seedlings, it causes the stem near the base of the plant to become weak and withered. The plant usually topples over and dies because of this. Damping off can be a particular problem with watermelons that are planted under certain conditions. Keep reading to learn more about what makes watermelon seedlings die and how to prevent damping off in watermelon plants.

Help, My Watermelon Seedlings are Dying

Watermelon damping off has a set of recognizable symptoms. It affects young seedlings, which wilt and often fall over. The lower part of the stem becomes waterlogged and girdled near the soil line. If pulled out of the ground, the plant’s roots will be discolored and stunted. These problems can be directly traced to Pythium, a family of fungi that lives in the soil. There are several species of Pythium that can lead to damping off in watermelon plants. They tend to strike in cool, moist environments.

How to Prevent Watermelon Damping Off

Since the Pythium fungus thrives in the cold and the wet, it can often be prevented by keeping seedlings warm and on the dry side. It tends to be a real problem with watermelon seeds that are sown directly in the ground. Instead, start seeds in pots that can be kept warm and dry. Don’t plant the seedlings out until they have at least one set of true leaves. Often this is enough to prevent damping off, but Pythium has been known to strike in warm soils as well. If your seedlings are already showing signs, remove the plants that are affected. Apply fungicides containing mefenoxam and azoxystrobin to the soil. Be sure to read the instructions-- only a certain amount of mefenoxam can be safely applied to plants each year. This should kill the fungus and give the remaining seedlings a chance to thrive.

Downy mildew affects cucurbits, among them watermelon. Downy mildew on watermelons only affects the leaves and not the fruit. However, if left unchecked, it can defoliate the plant, making it unable to photosynthesize. Once leaves are damaged, plant health fails immediately and production of the profitable fruits is diminished. It is important to implement downy mildew treatment immediately upon noticing the disease to protect the rest of the crop.

Watermelons with Downy Mildew

Watermelons are a symbol of summer and one of its greatest pleasures. Who can picture a picnic without these juicy, sweet fruits? In crop situations, watermelon downy mildew poses serious economic threats. Its presence can reduce yields and the disease is extremely contagious. The first signs are yellow spots on leaves but, unfortunately, this symptom mimics many other plant diseases. We'll go through the other signs and some preventative measures you can take to reduce the chances of this disease affecting your crop. Downy mildew on watermelons shows as pale green spots on leaves which morph together into larger spots. These become yellow and eventually the leaf tissue dies. The undersides of the leaves seem water soaked before they die and dark spores may be visible. The spores are only on the undersides and appear dark purple in color. The spore growth is only visible when the leaf is wet and disappear when it dries. Over time, the lesions turn brown and the leaf becomes almost entirely black and falls off. The leaf petioles are usually retained on the plant. Where control is not achieved, entire defoliation may occur, disrupting the plant's ability to produce essential sugars to fuel growth. If fruit are present, the stem will rot.

Conditions for Watermelon Downy Mildew

Watermelons with downy mildew occur when temperatures are cool. Temperatures of 60 degrees F. (16 C.) at night and 70 degrees F. (21 C.) during the day encourage spore spread and growth. Rain or consistently humid conditions further cause spread. The disease spores probably travel by wind, as an infected field can be miles away and infect another. The pathogen does not survive winters in the north. North Carolina State University has a site where they use several factors to predict where the pathogen will appear. Professional growers can check the site to view past incidents of the disease and forecasts for areas where it is likely to show up next.

Downy Mildew Treatment

Plant where there is plenty of air circulation and little shade. Avoid irrigating the leaves when there is not ample opportunity for them to dry quickly. Copper fungicide may offer some protection but in large cropping situations mobile fungicides with an active ingredient that attacks the fungi are recommended. Mefanoxam with either mancozeb or chlorothalonil seem to provide the best protection. Sprays should be used every five to seven days. There are not yet any resistant varieties of watermelon, so early notice and preventative practices are urgently needed.

Watermelon history is rich, lengthy and steeped in folklore, but while we may know quite a bit about watermelon history, their genesis seems to be a bit of a mystery. We do know that people have been eating watermelon for millennia; archaeologists have found watermelon seeds at a 5,000 year old site in Libya, and seeds and painting of watermelons were recovered in ancient Egyptian tombs dating back 4,000 years ago.

But the question of its parentage is still in doubt. Wild melons that might fit the bill run all over the map. A potential contender is the citron melon, which is indigenous to southern Africa. Or it might be the egusi melon hailing from western Africa. Lastly, and most probable, watermelon's true ancestor might be the gurum, or gurma melon.

Irish Grey Watermelon Info

Regardless of its parentage, one thing is certain; I am eternally grateful for those ancient people who were committed to breeding the sweet, ubiquitous watermelons we drool over today. There are many types of watermelon to choose, from hybrids to heirlooms.

One of the lesser known and more difficult to come by is the Irish Grey. Irish Grey watermelon info is also hard to come by. Apparently, during the early 1920's, commercial growing of Irish Grey watermelons was in its heyday and had been a popular cultivar since the turn of the century.

While there is little Irish Grey watermelon info, like why it waned in popularity, I can only guess. Perhaps, it was the pale green/grayish rind that people found unappealing, leaning towards the vibrant green hues of the stereotypical melon favored today.

I have read of two different accounts regarding the rind and depending on which is true, the reason for the decline might be shipping issues. One account states that Irish Grey watermelons have a thick rind while another proclaims them to have a thinner rind, more apt to be damaged during shipping.

Whatever the case, if you can find the seed, there is no reason not to be growing Irish Grey watermelons of your own. These oblong melons are large, up to 30-40 pounds, with bright red flesh and white seeds. They're also apparently very sweet, not stringy but firm, and juicy inside. A winner for the home grower for flavor as well as a novelty in the garden.

For me, thinning out any young seedling is painful, but I know it has to be done. Thinning out fruit is also a common practice and is done to engender larger, healthier fruit by reducing competition for light, water, and nutrients. If you want enormous watermelons, for example, then thinning the watermelon fruit is necessary, but the question is how to thin out watermelon plants? How many watermelons per plant should be left? Keep reading to find out all about pruning watermelons.

How Many Watermelons per Plant?

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. Watermelons can weigh as much as 200 pounds (90.5 kg.), but to get one that size, thinning watermelon fruit is a necessity. The vine simply does not have enough nutrients to foster more than one fruit of that size. This is where pruning watermelon plants comes into the picture, but removing melon fruit may have some downsides as well.

About Removing Melon Fruit

There are a few considerations before going off willy-nilly pruning a watermelon vine. Pruning promotes healthier vines and increased fruit size but if cutting the vines back too early, you may reduce the number of female blossoms. With no female blooms to pollinate, there will be no fruit. Pruning will also reduce the size of the vines, which can grow to over 3 feet (1 m.) in length. Also, cutting back the plants may cause the vine to send out additional runners, which will then delay the fruit set, as the plant is now focusing on growing vines instead of developing melons. As the vine begins to fruit, at first it may seem that you have a bumper crop awaiting you. Don’t thin or prune the vine just yet! Many of the young melons will shrivel and die off, leaving only the strongest melons to ripen. If that is your end goal, then there’s no longer any reason to prune the vine back.

How to Thin Out Watermelon Plants

Whether you want to rein in the size of the vine or you’re trying for a blue ribbon melon, thinning watermelons is an easy procedure. Using sharp gardening shears, first remove any diseased, dead, yellowing, or otherwise infested leaves and shoots at the joint, where they connect to the main stem. At this time, also remove any secondary vines, those that are not blooming or look sickly. Leave one or two fruits on the vine if you want the largest melons or up to 4 for healthy, average-sized watermelon fruit. Because watermelons are prone to diseases and parasites, don’t cut the vines when they are wet.