Melon (Watermelon)

Plant family

Curcurbits (Cucurbitaceae)

Season Overview

Details

Light requirement

Sunny

Water requirement

Moist

Soil

Medium (loamy)

Nutrient requirement

High

Plant distance

100 cm

Row spacing

150 cm

Seeding depth

2 cm

Instructions

The season for this plant has not yet begun. The following instructions are for the beginning season.

End of April

Propagating

Mid of May

Harden

End of May

Planting

Description

The watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is a crop plant originating from Africa, which is now cultivated in warm regions worldwide. The prostrate to climbing, annual, herbaceous watermelon plant forms many long and hairy branches (shoot axes).

Growing tips

Your watermelons should be grown in a warm environment (windowsill, greenhouse, conservatory). Once the first leaves have formed, you can separate the seedlings. It is then best to continue growing them in a warm environment until the soil is warm enough outdoors (end of May - beginning of June). The small melon plants can be carefully planted out in planting holes filled with compost (heavy feeders!). It is essential to protect the young plants from strong sunlight at the beginning. Water your melons regularly without allowing them to become waterlogged. It is best not to use cold water from the tap (especially in colder temperatures), but always use stagnant water from the rain barrel. When watering, make sure that you never water the melon plants from above onto the leaves, otherwise there is a risk of mold. During the main growing season, you can prune the tips regularly so that plenty of branches with lots of flowers develop. Over the course of the year, many large leaves will also form on these branches, most of which you should cut off so that the melon plants can put their energy into fruit development. After pruning in summer, only a handful of leaves should remain on each branch above the fruit. Thin side shoots can be cut off completely except for a few centimetres at the base.