CANTALOUPE

quiltygirl,

Just the Case Knife Beans one the right the Okra to the left will be about 8 to 10 ft and Red in Color there are 4 rolls of it and does not have to be staked they stand on their own they will have a stalk pretty thick.

Sarge

Cantaloupe update...I took this pic just a few minutes ago. It's at least 6" long and starting to look like a real cantaloupe now, lol. Contrast this to the picture I posted earlier in this thread 11 days ago on June 8th.

Shan't be long now, eh? Looks delicious.

Do they store well, or do I need to eat as soon as I harvest?

John - a beautiful looking melon to be sure!

I found that fruit ripened on the vine does not keep well. Last year I had so many come in at the same time, I gave them to neighbors and took others to work and cut them into chunks so team members could "snack" on their way through the kitchen. Very popular!

When I had too much cantaloupe I made some frozen yogurt with it.

I have a Vitamix -- which is a turbo charged blender. If I freeze some plain / vanilla yogurt for a couple hours ahead of time and then put it in the Vitamix with the canteloupe it ends up being like 'soft serve ice cream / frozen yogurt'. My grandkids really liked it.

1. Sarge- I think it's great that you're working with a few other folks on a group project for some good fresh produce. And your photos are awesome, my big question though is: what type soil do you have up there? I've been to northern Alabama where they have the red clay, and I live near the swamp where we have black more clay-like than sandy soil that's alkaline....that looks like red sand to me, but it's obvious it produces well.

2. This is my third year trying to grow cantaloupe. The first year I had about half a dozen that got up to tennis ball size, but then the mice got 'em. Second year only a couple of plants, not the best location and they flowered but never fruited. This year they're off to a great start, haven't seen a for-sure female flower yet, but only planted from seed a month ago.

So- rather than tying them up has anyone else had success just using something like pinestraw, hay, or cypress chips under the melon to keep it from getting ground rot? Or am I just asking to be dissapointed by not having a trellis and pantyhose?

neworleansdude,


Ours is in fact red clay or red mud if you will the ground you see has been worked for years by many generations of family and natural compost and crops turned into it and added to it much like the Mt. O poo you have at your place . so it is now more of dirt than a clay .


Cantaloupe need several plants and mounds of them or several plants in the area to be pollinated so they will produce . placing materials under the melons so that they will not is what I do.

I use a synthetic carpet NOT plastic type and check them after the rain has stopped and the sun has been out for a bit I try to move them a little so they do not form a divot and hold water under the melon.

As for the last …. to be dissapointed by not having a trellis and pantyhose?..... if you are limited on space this is why folks do this and it does work well and no melon rot.

Sarge

I only planted one cantaloupe, does that mean it won't produce fruit?

nope there will be male and female flowers on the plant but for best results mose folks plant two .

Sarge

so will I get any fruit? I'm a little confused by your answer Sarge!

you should get Fruit Yes

Thanks! Even if I only get one I will be happy!

any is better than none

John~What variety of cantaloupe did you plant?

Prettymess~melons produce both male and female flowers on the same plant, so you'll see both on your vines. You should get some fruit, but maybe only 2 or 3 melons from your one plant.

Here's one of my Honey Rock cantaloupes from this morning's garden stroll.

I planted Hale's Best, but I have pollination issues so I only got 2 cantaloupes from one of my three plants. I set out a couple more transplants within the last week or so, though, and I will pollinate with a q-tip this time around. That's too bad SVB moths don't pollinate while they're out buzzing around my garden, I'd be in business.

Anyway, the family loved the fruit.

I grew Hale's Best last year and they were quite tasty. I only had 2 plants, I think, and we only got about 3 or 4 melons.

I think I have a bunch of cantaloupe seeds in the bottom of my purse. A seed packet must have opened in there! I am a mess.

LOL Prettymess!! That sounds like loads of fun to clean up. NOT!

I found the seed packet in my kitchen with lots of seeds still in it. At least they aren't basil seeds, those are super tiny.

my cantaloupe has little female flowers and male flowers, I can see two little bulges under the flowers I am expecting to turn into cantaloupes! I can't wait!!

Also I am making cantaloupe ice cream tonight with a cantaloupe I got from the store! It's all ready to go just needs to be churned!

Oh...cantaloupe ice cream / frozen yogurt is wonderful.

I'm so excited to go home and eat it!

OK, I saw this photo and thought of our discussion on how to support vining melons with stockings

Wow!!! That's a lot of fruits and the stocking for prop is new to me!! Belle

Awesome set-up, quiltygirl!

I thought my melons were done producing, but I inspected them yesterday and lo and behold- four more melons are growing!

Anybody growing Minnesota Minis?

i have one little cantaloupe growing! Also those seeds in my purse were actually cucumber seeds, I planted more and now have a ridiculous amount of cucumber plants. I planted more cantaloupe seeds to!

You can also use a old sheet and fab a cradle for the fruit if you want as well as using nylons. I have my melons growing on a trellis this year and letting the fruit just hang by itself, haven't had a problem yet. I have read that cantalopes are ripe when they fall off the vine, I have harvested 5 already this way this year and they were fine. In the past I used to pick them when I thought they were ready and they weren't. I also have honeydews along with the cantalope this year without supporting the fruit and they are doing fine. Remember that a vining plant that fruits will already be prepared to support it's own self and fruit without any intervention from humans to help, call it fashion by design! Also, both of my melons are in 18 gallon pots.

I'm growing cantelope on a trellis for the first time, I plan to use some of those nets that veggies and hams come in. I figure I can use S hooks to hook the nets to the trellis. Should still let sunshine and air flow thru.

Pam

Good idea Gem. I had one watermelon flower that had poked through the chicken wire surrounding my bales. When the melon started to form and was about tennis ball size I figured it needed support, so put it into the foot part of some pantyhose. Guess there was not enough air and a yellow/rotting spot started.