Melons

[gardenqueen]

I had some advice from here recently and have been treating the melons as for cucumbers!

I have cut off the side shoots to two to three leaves. Now my problem is, that although there are masses of flowers, none are females!

[gardenqueen]

[Amazin]

They can tend to produce only male flowers to begin with, then the females finally arrive (ladies prerogative?)    ;D

[Jenfur]

Anyone have any basic instructions on growing melons? One has just started to poke its head out- in the unheated greenhouse- and I don't know how big they grow, or how to look after them, or where to plant them on to!
Thanks for any help xx

[gardenqueen]

They can tend to produce only male flowers to begin with, then the females finally arrive (ladies prerogative?)    ;D

I shall await their arrival then!  ;D

[manicscousers]

Anyone have any basic instructions on growing melons? One has just started to poke its head out- in the unheated greenhouse- and I don't know how big they grow, or how to look after them, or where to plant them on to!
Thanks for any help xx

hiya, jenfur, we grow melons the same as cucumbers, in the poly border, tied in and just wind the string around the plant as it gets bigger, we take out the flowers for the first 8", when the fruit comes, we pinch out the tip a couple of leaves from it, feed with tomato feed and net the fruit as it gets bigger..the nets from oranges are quite good, hope this helps  :)

[Jenfur]

Thanks :) so if I am pinching out the tip should I only expect one fruit per plant?

[manicscousers]

sorry, that's on each of the side shoots, we usually get about 4 to 5 fruits per plant, the main stem grows to about 4 feet..ours is sweetheart which is a nice little fruit, we don't pinch out the main stem  :)

[woody]

hows everybodys tigger toms :P

[dtw]

I've got a few flowers on mine.
I'm amazed that such a spindly plant can produce such large fruits.

[Jenfur]

We shall just have to see if they continue to grow then. Thanks for your help xxx

[cornykev]

Sorry to say Woody both have had it, two year old battered the first and the second just give up the ghost I think it was lonely like losing its twin.  ;D ;D ;D