You mention melons and my mouth begins to water. It does not matter what type it is from watermelons to even cantaloupes, I love me some juicy melons. Next season, I will try my hand at figuring out how to grow honeydew melons.

It is very easy to confuse them with cantaloupes, however they are different. Honeydew melons have a smooth skin, when compared to the rougher skin of cantaloupes. These melons contain vitamin C, vitamin A, magnesium as well as potassium.

Here’s What You’ll Need:

• honeydew seeds
• potting soil
• paper seedling pots
• manure
• compost
• trellis (optional)
• container (optional)

If you are going to plant your seedlings indoors, start about a month before the frost. Use paper or degradable seedling pots, to avoid having to mess with the very delicate roots at transplanting. Plant your seeds an inch deep, they should germinate within 10 days. Keep them in the seedling trays until about 21 days after your frost date.

Prep your garden soil with manure and compost, and make small hills about 2 to 3 feet apart. Plant two or three of your seedlings in each hill. If you were sowing your seeds directly into the ground, then plant a few more seeds per hill and thin them out after they germinate.

Initially they require a lot of water, however once they start flowering it is recommended that you let them dry out a little between watering. This will help make them taste sweeter. Keep an eye out for bacterial wilt, cucumber beetles and powdery white mildew on the leaves.

Depending on the variety, they should be ready for harvesting within 80 to 100 days. Make sure to only pick the ripe melons, these are the ones with the pale white looking skin. They should just slip off the vine. Enjoy them fresh or store in your fridge for up to 14 days.

You can get more information on the Gardening Blog, here…

How To Grow Honeydew Melons

.