The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Growing => Fruit => Topic started by: Fleecewife on May 13, 2011, 11:51:47 am
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Hi Everyone. I picked up some canteloupe melon seeds at a seed exchange and now have seven seedlings in my propagator, at the two true leaf stage. I have grown melons once before and although lots set fruit none ripened. So what should I do from now on? It's too early to put them into the greenhouse up here so I will keep them in the propagator until early June but then what? Should I have sown them earlier to give them time to grow fruit? Is it worth persevering?
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Haven't tried growing them myself but found this http://www.howtogardenadvice.com/plant_list/fruit/grow_cantaloupe.html (http://www.howtogardenadvice.com/plant_list/fruit/grow_cantaloupe.html) let us know how it goes
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Always worth persevering! i have only grown them once, and I just let them do their own thing. i understand that pollination can sometimes be a problem, but if they have set, that shouldn't be a problem. i found that they just run riot in my greenhouse and I didn't select fruit to continue with and cut off all the others, which is the correct thing to do, but I can't bear it! Am growing them again this year, but am trying an outdoor variety (still in greenhose at the moment). Will grow a couple inside just to test them out, but will be limiting fruit set. The ones i grew before were absolutely fantastically gorgeous! can't express how much nicer they are than shop bought!
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Thank you both - very helpful :) So I will dig a pit and fill with lovely sheep manure then plant melons on that, in the tunnel. Last time I helped the set a bit with a paintbrush, so will do that and limit the fruit (if I get any :D) once it's getting on a bit in the year. With my new tunnel cover on it seems to be warmer than the old one, so perhaps I will have more success. It sounds as if the clue is in the manure, as before I had them in large pots. Also plenty of water it seems.
I wonder if they cross pollinate with other cucurbits as I will have cucumbers, squash, pumpkins and courgettes in there as well .
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Very interesting thread as when I managed to leave my seed tin out in the storm last week ::) i discovered alot of damp seeds and among them some melon seeds I'd just saved from a shop bought melon to see if I could dry them and get them to grow, never expecting anything ;) So I have found dozens of seeds, several of which have started growing in the paper wrapper :o
I just tipped them into an empty seed tray after taking cabbages out, and popped it in the plastic tent (fake g/house) until I could think what else to do ;) I'd be surprised if I got an actual melon, I can barely get tomatoes to mature some years ::) but it's something new to watch and you never know.. ;D
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Hi Ellied - it will be interesting to see what you get from them ;D Mine are still luxuriating in their heated propagator waiting for June before I even take them up to the greenhouse-inside-the-polytunnel (very low temps forecast for last night of May). The tallest is about a foot long but no flowers on yet. I think I am probably too kind to my plants and you are more likely to get results with your unexpected ones than I am with my mollycoddled ones ::) ;D ;D It will all depend on what kind of summer we get, but it's great to try something new.