I've been getting cantaloupe all summer

[Major Nikon]

This one is almost 7lbs.

[riversedge]

1. WHOW mine are green yet and small.

[soothsayer]

2. I am this very second making a cantaloupe, grapefruit juice and rum drink

That’s a beauty!

[SWBTATTReg]

3. Wow! I'm envious w/ glee and you've got my mouth watering for a melon!!

[MLAA]

4. Beautiful

First garden this year....the cantaloupes looked beautiful and lush despite being in a desert. I babied them, I played them music, I whispered to them. When the leaves started turning dry and yellow I gave them extra water. Finally two beautiful ones were ready. What anticipation. They were beautifully shaped and a lovely color. Sliced them and they were watery and tasteless! Guess I gave them too much water.

How did you water yours? 🙂

[Major Nikon]

7. I have a drip irrigation system

Last edited Mon Aug 3, 2020, 10:51 PM - Edit history (1)

They are in a raised bed and I give them quite a bit of water.

I'm actually not a big fan of this variety of cantaloupe, but my wife loves them. As far as flavor goes, for the bigger ones near the rind they are a bit tough and flavorless, but about 1" from the surface and throughout they are quite sweet and flavorful.

edit: 1" was a bit of an exaggeration. I just sliced this one and just cut a bit more off the rind than I do with smaller ones and it was fine. There was actually a ton of flavor in this one. Just leaving it in the kitchen uncut for a few hours resulted in my whole kitchen smelling of cantaloupe.

[lostnfound]

5. So jealous, what is your secret?

I have no luck with melons.

[Major Nikon]

8. Not sure I have a secret, but I've been growing them on a trellis

I have two large raised beds which are 3' from each other. I put up two 4x8 sections of cattle panels between the two beds and tied them off at the top. Once the melons start to get large I support them with a net that's tied to the panels.

If I were to design raised beds just to grow melons, I think the way to do it would be to have a horizontal trellis between two beds. Keeping them off the ground allows them to ripe more evenly and keep the ants away from them.

[sinkingfeeling]

6. Yummy!

[Vinca]

9. Wow! I've never been able to grow a decent sized cantaloupe and finally gave up.

That's a beauty.

[Major Nikon]

10. They need a lot of water

I'm doing mine in a raised bed with a drip irrigation system on a timer.