No cantaloupes (musk mellon)

[Jeff Thies]

Neither my neighbor or myself have any cantaloupes that have set fruit. Not a problem with watermelon or honey dew melons.

The vines look healthy. Highs have been in the 90's for some time.

Jeff

[gloria.p]

Too hot? Cold nights? Too much nitrogen fertilizer?

If you are in the U.S. I'd call a county agriculture office and ask. That's why they exist.

gloria p

[EVP MAN]

I'm in Pennsylvania zone 5-6. I planted Hale's Best cantaloupes this year and averaged 5 melons per plant. The problem I'm having is the fact that the fruit isn't very sweet. I don't know if it's something I done wrong or if it's the melon I decided to grow. Next year I'll try Honey Rock and Super Star which is a hybrid. My soil is clay amended with cow manure and compost. In the fall, I mulch leaves and cover my bed. Come spring I fork them into the soil along with a slow release granular fertilizer about two weeks before setting out my plants.

Rich

[Higgs Boson]

This is to all. Lucky you have hot weather. Here, in So. Calif coastal, we have had the weirdest of all summers -- cool and overcast. So my cantaloupes and watermelons flower -- and then nothing. Yes, they have adequate water and compost/worm castings. Last year, I had GORGEOUS cantaloupes. What else could be factor, if not lack of summer heat? Note: My beans are doing great -- both green and yellow. It's just the damn melons. Also cucumbers were not stellar. And the only tomatoes that are doing well are volunteers. The tomatoe plants from Home Despot got tossed. A few new ones from a local nursery are doing pretty well.

[Leon Fisk]

How ripe did you let them get? I'm just picking our muskmelon now. They seem to be best (sweetest) when some cracks develop around where the stem attaches. A nice tan/brownish color and the stem will detach with little effort on your part. Another clue is that you can easily smell them. A few cracks may show in the fruit itself. When you cut them open the rind will only be 1/8 to 1/4 inch max for the most part. At this point you need to use them right away. They go from really good to rotten in just a day or two. The stuff you find/buy at the store was picked way, way too soon and will never be so sweet and tasty.

Been freezing some of what we can't eat and giving others to the neighbor. It would be nice if like one a week got ripe, but sadly it doesn't seem to work out that way...

[EVP MAN]

I started my melons from seed under grow lights. They were 6 weeks old when I planted them in the garden May 15. Picked my first mellon about two weeks ago. They were a great color on the outside but a bit pale on the inside. They just about fell off the vine into your hand when I picked them up. Just not as sweet tasting as I expected them to be. The vines were running wild and I did prune them back. Perhaps this was my mistake. I read on the net that the more leaves on a mellon plant the better as the leaves produce sugar for the fruit. Any ideas on this?

Rich

[Leon Fisk]

I only have one plant, bought it from a local market/nursery. They called it "muskmelon". Haven't a clue to the variety. It was maybe 6-8 inches tall. Planted it a few days before Memorial Day weekend. I let it run wild and tossed a five gallon bucket or two of water on if there wasn't any rain for a week or so. The first melon I picked was waaay too early, really really pale inside, not even a hint of sweetness. Took about another 2 1/2 weeks to start getting yummy ones. Picked eight now since last Saturday, they have all been really sweet and juicy. Will probably get at least one more this coming week, maybe another two, but I have my doubts that those will get mature enough to be yummy.

My neighbor started his from seed in trays early and planted them out maybe a week or two later. His are still really green and only about half the size mine were. Those aren't getting full sun though and he has a lot more weeds and grass mixed in with the plants. Didn't have any straw/mulch around mine and kept them well weeded. The plant spread out probably 8-10 feet in all directions (16-20 foot diameter).

Nothing all that special, but a couple images I took a few days ago. The picked melons were scrubbed/washed. The file names pretty much describe them:

should have taken a picture after one was cut open, but I didn't remember till my hands were all gooey. It was/is really hot & humid, just wasn't up to messing around with pictures anymore...

[EVP MAN]

Nice looking melons indeed :) I will try again next year but this is what I will do differently. I'll space each plant at least five feet apart. I won't prune any of the vines and I will cut way back on the amount of water I give them two weeks before they ripen. I read that this also makes the melons sweeter.

Rich