Growing melons

Perfect melon growing latitude is 30N to 35TD; Spanish Springs is 39 to 38' 57" N

January - try to buy 75 day varieties

Melons like it hot and bright: sunny days in the eighties, nights in the sixties. Melons Mature 80-120 days after seeding: some watermelons need about a month longer (up to 150) says. None of the melons take kindly to frost, but if you don’t have a decent interval between spring and fall freezes, there are ways to stretch the season.

Soil light, deep and well drained: sandy loam is best. Amend soil in the fall with leaf mold and compost, green manure or cover crop.

September – set up next year’s melon bed. South sloping to promote warmth, small enough to work in without stepping on growing area; protected from N and/or W wind.

Rotate your melons to a new area every year, especially if the soil is infected with nematodes or Fusarium.

Watermelon does well in acidic (ph 5-7); melon prefers basic or alkaline (ph 7-8).

Root systems are large but relatively shallow.

Melons hate soil compaction and water logging. Protect from wind, especially N and/or W, but don’t block out the sun.

Plant after threat of frost has passed and soil temps are at least 60. Four inch transplants should work just fine and produce fruit.

April - Nick and soak watermelon seeds; start 4 inch pots with 4-5 seeds each, 2-4 weeks before Memorial Day (find out when air temps stay above 60 at night -- can I plant three weeks prior to that if transplants covered with Agrobon); keep in a dark moist place until seedlings emerge in about a week at 75-85 degrees. Watermelon can take longer because seeds are tough, scarify and soak first. Once seedlings emerge provide 16 hours under grow lights, keeping them 2-3 inches from the light. Thin to three plants per pot; feed with diluted fish emulsion once or twice a week until they’re ready for the garden.

Six millimeter black polyethylene is helpful.

At planting, mix a shovel full of well-rotted manure into the soil and plant melons in “hills” a grouping of three or four. Sprinkle soil with diatomaceous earth for slugs; use Bt for caterpillars. Cover with Agrobon for 3 weeks until plants are established

Remove any leaves that show signs of disease, cull (prune out) defective fruits to 2-3 per vine; wrap fruits in Agrobon bags to deter cucumber beetle.

Late blooming wildlife friendly plants

From National Wildlife Federation August 2008 newsletter:

Hummingbird trumpet (also known as California fuchsia): “They’re not neat and tidy plants, but hummingbirds love them,” says Barbara Fick, an Oregon State University extension horticulturist. The orange-red tubular flowers of this perennial, Epilobium canum, look especially attractive sprawling across slopes. Fick says these fuchsias, which are native from Oregon south to California and New Mexico, are drought tolerant.

Blazing stars: “Hands down, these are among the best nectar sources for butterflies,” says Bob Hendrickson, the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum’s assistant director of horticulture programs. About 40 species of blazing star, also known as gayfeather and by the genus name of Liatris, are native to the midwestern and eastern United States; several of them flower in autumn. “Dotted gayfeather is one of the last to bloom,” says Hendrickson, who also recommends rough gayfeather. Southern blazing star is another late performer.

Find average first frost and when to plant fall veggies

Know When to Plant What: Find Your Average First Fall Frost Date
7/30/2008 8:04:48 AM
By Barbara Pleasant
Tags: first fall frost, fall harvest crops, fall gardens, autumn harvests

To determine your optimum dates for sowing fall crops, add three weeks to the days to maturity ratings listed below or shown on your seed packs to compensate for days that are getting shorter. Then count back from your average first fall frost date to find the date you should sow each crop. (To find your average first fall frost date, search by state in the tables provided by the National Climatic Data Center.) Cool-season plants will continue to grow a little after nights turn chilly, but they will make most of their new growth early on, while the weather is still warm.

Many of the best crops of fall — including salad greens and various cabbage cousins — will refuse to germinate in soil warmer than 85 degrees, so the seeds are best started indoors (on a 90-degree day, surface soil temperatures may actually be 110 degrees or more). The procedure for growing seedlings is the same as in spring (see Seed Starting Basics), but care for transplanted seedlings requires some extra hardware. Insect pressure in late summer is severe, so use homemade or purchased lightweight row covers to exclude critters. (See The No-Spray Way to Protect Plants) It helps to shade each seedling with a light-colored flowerpot, pail or other cover for two to three days after transplanting. Protected from scorching sun, the seedlings can concentrate on growing reliable roots.

Cabbage and broccoli seedlings need to be planted at least eight weeks before the first fall frost, and as long as their roots are kept moist, they seem to benefit from a spell of hot weather as late summer days become shorter. When set out so late that they miss the last warm spells, cabbage cousins tend to stop growing too soon. Whether you’re working with seedlings you grew yourself or bought at a store, get them in the ground as soon as you can.

FALL HARVEST CROPS
Days to Maturity

beets 55 to 60
broccoli 70 to 80
Brussels sprouts 90 to 100
cauliflower 55 to 65
cabbage 70 to 80
carrots 85 to 95
Chinese cabbage 75 to 85
cilantro 50 to 55 (leaf); 90 to 105 (coriander seed)
collard greens 60 to 100
daikon radishes 60 to 75
green beans 50 to 60
green onions 50 to 60
kale 40 to 50
kohlrabi 50 to 60
leeks 100 to 120
lettuce (leaf) 40 to 50
lettuce (head) 70 to 85
mustard greens 30 to 40
onions (seeds) 130 to 150
onions (sets) 60 to 80
peas 50 to 60
radishes 25 to 30
rutabaga 70 to 80
spinach 50 to 60
Swiss chard 30 to 50
turnips 55 to 60

Article from Mother Earth News August 2008