Topic: melon madness - too dim for words

[campanula]

help - reading (somewhere) that melons needed a long growing season, I sowed some ages ago. I have lights  (ahem!) so they have been growing away nicely. Too bloody nicely as they are putting on triffid-like growth speeds and I fear they will be busting out of my wardrobe - also, another crop due to commandeer space. Most stuff I have read says stuff like ' they can be grown in a coldframe', dead casually. Erm....how? I cannot quite imagine a rampant melon in my coldframe. And it is a big one (how boastful you are tonight, suzy)In what? A pot? Obviously, I have lottie delusional illness and have not really thought everything through (like i ever!) but I have these four huge leafy things which I fear for when their accommodation must come to an end. Oh yeah, I should mention the 6 cucumbers too.
Any suggestions....pleeeeeese. I have a lot of polythene!
And love building 'constructions'.
cheers, suzy

[tim]

 - as good as your word !!

Just sowed some cus today - much like melons? Yes, everything likes a long season, but in the UK you take what you get?  Yes - we've grown melons in a cold frame.  Limit them severely!

We'll try to think up an answer!! = Tim

[cleo]

OK- calm down, have a glass of whatever and relax :)

This may sound a bit `mucky` but imagine youself lying in the cold frame with arms and legs stretched out-that is how you train your melon in a frame.

You take out the top and encourage the `laterals` the same way you would with a cucumber but along the ground rather than upright.

Stephan.

[Wicker]

Stephan I really will have to find out who all on the lottie site is going to be growing cus laterally and - though I might not enjoy the picture - I will be thinking of them lying stretched out in a cold frame - confused about what parts of the human frame would be "top", laterals" and "upright" though!!  Don't enlighten me!  ;) :-[

Megan

[tim]

Perfect description, Stephan. And Megan, melons, I think? Cus are less fussy. = Tim

[ina]

I'm a first time meloneer and after reading this thread I pulled out my little alphabetical lottie notebook (an addressbook really) where I write all the tidbits I pick-up along the way, a lot of them coming from this board.

Under the M for melons:
Plant out late May in greenhouse or tunnel. Fruit only on side branches - pinch top after 5th leaf - pinch side branches after 6th leaf - top after 2nd leaf behind the fruit. Lots of water but not cold. High nitrogen feed when in flower. Open to air on warm days for insect pollination - for hand pollination, male flowers grow together, females grow single and have a k-nob (hahaha, the auto nasty word catcher changed k-nob to thingy hehehe).

Do the experienced melon growers agree with this?

[campanula]

meloneer! love it! thanks ina, stephan, wicker and tim - am much much calmer - especially since I have just done some timely nipping. cheers all, suzy