How do you protect a watermelon from Bugs?
Depending on the size of the melon you need to protect, cut out a square of hardware cloth that will be large enough to wrap around the fully mature melon and still fold up on either end. A moon & stars watermelon is going to take a lot more wire than a cantaloupe.
How do you grow a MelOn in a cage?
Insert your melon into the open end of its melon cage. Fold up the last set of end flaps and secure them with metal string wire while being careful not to damage the stem of the plant attached to the melon.
How do you store watermelon pieces?
Watermelon pieces are stacked on top of the plate. As you can see, the water can drain down the side of the plate, into the bottom of the bowl, while the watermelon stays separated. So There You Have It!
How do you get rid of armyworms on watermelon plants?
Like any caterpillars, they can be hand-picked when they’re out feeding, but if your armyworm problem is pretty severe, you may be better off applying Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) or spinosad to your watermelon plants.
How do you protect watermelons from bugs?
1:543:07Protecting Watermelon Crops from Wildlife - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipHere we're going to use this netting material. Here. We have the two corners. Two corners uh with aMoreHere we're going to use this netting material. Here. We have the two corners. Two corners uh with a piece of rebar we have it tied into the ground. And we're just gonna pull it over top here.
How do I stop rats from eating melons?
Step by step: How to keep rodents off your melons with melon cagesGet hardware cloth. ... Cut square-sized pieces of hardware cloth large enough to complete encircle your mature melons. ... Secure a cylindrical shape with metal string. ... Create your wire end folds. ... Close one end of your melon cage. ... Cage your melon.More items...•
What to spray on watermelons for bugs?
Insecticides Insecticides used in watermelon are: abamectin, esfenvalerate, diazinon, dimethoate, carbofuran, dicofol, methomyl, permethrin, carbaryl, endosulfan, imidacloprid, bifenthrin, beta-cyfluthrin, thiamethoxam, spiromesifin, fenpropathrin, dinotefuran, spintor, vydate, and fulfill.
How do you take care of watermelons?
Keep soil moist, but not waterlogged. Water at the vine's base in the morning, and try to avoid wetting the leaves and avoid overhead watering. Reduce watering once fruit are growing. Dry weather produces the sweetest melon.
What to put under watermelons while growing?
In order to grow great watermelons, you'll need to put a barrier between the watermelons and the ground. This is to reduce the risk of rot and disease. Good ground barriers are straw, or even cardboard.
What animal ate my watermelon?
Animals such as squirrels, chipmunks, deer and woodchucks enjoy puncturing and eating melon crops. Coyotes and domesticated dogs also enjoy biting into sweet melons. Raccoons and birds make holes in the tops of melons and scoop or suck juices from the fruit's inside.
When Should I spray my watermelon?
Start spraying when vines start to run, no later than when the first (male) flowers open. From vine run until mid-May, spray every ten days. After mid-May, spray every week through harvest regardless of the weather. Downy or powdery mildew can attack any time a crop goes more than a week without a fungicide.
What is the best fertilizer for watermelons?
When fertilizing watermelon plants, use nitrogen based fertilizer at the onset. Once the plant begins flowering, however, switch to feeding the watermelon a phosphorus and potassium based fertilizer. Watermelons require ample potassium and phosphorus for optimal melon production.
How many watermelons do you get per plant?
How many watermelons do you get per plant? You should get between two and four watermelons per plant so it's important to protect your harvest.
Should I trim watermelon vines?
Pruning watermelons promotes healthier vines and increases fruit size. Look for irregular or rotting fruit to prune from the plant. Removing the less than perfect melons will enable the plant to focus energy towards growing bigger, healthier, juicier melons.
Should you turn watermelons as they grow?
Yes! We always recommend you rotate crops in your garden as much as possible to prevent diseases and pests. Watermelons should not come after or before any other melons, and if possible, any other members of the cucurbit family (winter squash, cucumbers, zucchini, summer squash, pumpkins).
How often should you water watermelon?
Watering Watermelons They require plentiful regular, even watering for quick growing. Give watermelons 1 to 2 inches (2.5. -5cm) of water every week (1 inch equals 16 gallons/60.5 liters.) Keep the soil moist until the fruit reaches full size then stop watering while the fruit ripens.
Do rats eat melon?
Melon and other watery fruits like seedless grapes, apples, pears, nectarines, kiwi and peaches are good treats. Banana and avocado are high-fat fruits that are safe for rats. Offer a small amount of these fruits a few times per week to add variety to your rat's diet.
What is eating my cantaloupe at night?
A “cantaloper” could be any rodent who eats your cantaloupes in the middle of the night. Opossums, groundhogs, raccoons and foxes are the usual suspects.
Do rats eat cantaloupes?
Rats, much like people, love sugary treats, and sweet fruits are no exception. Berries are especially a hit with rats. Be aware that red berries can turn a rat's stool red, which can resemble blood. Other fruits to feed pet rats include pears, watermelon, cantaloupe, kiwi, peaches, plums and grapes.
Do rats like cantaloupes?
Pet rats love to gorge on sugary treats like cantaloupe. It is sweet and juicy, and it is closely related to their other favorite treats from the watermelon family, like cucumbers, gourds, and pumpkins.
Experimentation: Trying to keep rodents off of our melons
We began experimenting with various remedies to see if we could outsmart the rodents.
2. Cut square-sized pieces of hardware cloth large enough to complete encircle your mature melons
Depending on the size of the melon you need to protect, cut out a square of hardware cloth that will be large enough to wrap around the fully mature melon and still fold up on either end.
4. Create your wire end folds
Once the wire cylinder is made, it’s time to make cuts to both ends to allow them to fold in.
5. Close one end of your melon cage
Closing up one end of the melon cage, but leaving the other side open so the melon an be inserted.
7. Watch, harvest, eat and share!
Perfectly vine-ripened cantaloupes smell so good! Every rodent within a 5 mile radius probably wanted to get their teeth on these, but the cages protected them.
2019 melon cage update
If you don’t feel like making your own melon cages or you want a more flexible wiring, we’ve got great news…
Don't let your melons rot. Use one of these farmer-tested techniques to keep melons off the ground and away from soil, diseases and pests
One of the sweetest treats of summer is a homegrown melon. That said, whether you’re growing cantaloupes, muskmelons or watermelons, leaving the ripening fruits on the ground can lead to rot and damage from pests such as slugs, earwigs, pill bugs and wireworms. Elevating developing melons so they don’t contact the soil solves this common problem.
1. Use Plastic Cradles
If you’re a backyard gardener who’s just raising a few melon plants in your veggie patch, commercially made plastic melon cradles are a great way to keep melons off the ground. When the melon begins to form, simply lift it up and place a cradle beneath it.
2. Build Platforms
Another way to keep melons off the ground is to make an elevated platform for each one. This can be done with some pieces of scrap wood and heavy hardware cloth. Build a square, rectangular or even triangular frame from the wood and then fasten a top of hardware cloth over it. Rest the growing melon on top of the hardware cloth as it matures.
3. Make Slings
If you grow your melons vertically, like I do, making melon slings (shown above) is the best way to keep melons off the ground. Use wide strips of old cotton sheets or sections of old nylon stockings to make slings. Tie each end of the sling to the fence or other climbing structure near where a young melon is starting to grow.
4. Use PVC Pipe Platforms
Another clever way to keep melons off the ground is to elevate each one on a piece of PVC pipe. When the melons are small, use 2- or 3-inch diameter pipe, and as they grow, replace the small pipe with a piece of larger diameter pipe. PVC pipe comes in widths as wide as 10 inches, so this method accommodates even large melons.
Step 1
Watch over your garden daily to make sure you catch your growing melons at the earliest stage of development. When budding melons are approximately the size of a golf ball or slightly larger, they're ready to be protected from animals.
Step 2
Place a plastic milk crate upside-down over each small, ripening melon. If necessary, adjust the crate so that the melon inside will still get lots of sunlight through the holes.
Step 3
Push a croquet wicket into the ground with one wicket leg inside of a plastic milk crate and the other leg outside of the crate. This will pin the crate to the ground. Use two wickets per crate, and put the wickets on opposite sides of each crate.
Step 4
Keep watch over your melons to ensure that the milk crates are allowing adequate sunlight through. When a melon has grown to approximately 75% of its expected adult size, remove the milk crate entirely. Animals are less likely to eat mature or nearly mature melons.