I am having fun watching for baby melons. These are now setting fruit. I have heard that I should remove all but two fruits of the larger varieties.
The fruits above are large watermelon, Delicata squash, a large-fruited bottle gourd, Baby Pam pumpkin, Lakota squash and finally a Big Rock pumpkin.
The male flowers below are watermelon, a Big Rock pumpkin flower and a couple of bottle gourd flowers. The white gourds blossoms seem to open in the evening and the yellow melon and orange squashes in the morning. I suspect the white flowers are pollinated by moths at night and I know the bees frequent the melons and squashes.
FYI: I looked up some information tonight on the fruit set process. Of course, squash and melon flowers are either male or female. Female flowers have a baby fruit below the blossom and males don’t. Pollination is needed for fruit set. Fruit set also requires a certain temperature range (not too hot) and a healthy vine. Fruit set occurs if the fruit continues to grow several days after the flower has shriveled and fallen off. If the female blossom was not pollinated, the fruit will not set.
Now that I have lots of baby fruits, I’m hoping for at least a few to set. Maybe I’ll get a great big watermelon or pumpkin this year!
Here’s a photo my dad sent me of a Delicata squash that has set and is growing nicely in his garden. Its supposed to be a very tasty heirloom winter squash. My neighbor gave me the seeds and my parents and I are looking forward to trying them.
Cucurbita pepo (squash)
Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum & Nakai, family Cucurbitaceae)
Pumpkin — Cucurbita spp.
9 Comments. Leave new
Aaaah, it’s hard to remove the fruit isn’t it?
I can’t do it!
Graziana
That little watermelon at the top is the cutest thing. I love it’s little fuzzies. Our watermelon plant died for some unknown reason. James was so sad!
I had four melon plants set in a back plot near my corn. I guess it was too far from the house, because some critter came and ate ALL the leaves off of every plant. My sugar baby watermelon is struggling with a few new leaves, but I don’t hold out much hope for it.
I have another watermelon plant that looks hardy, closer to the house, and untouched. No fruit flowers yet, just males. It would be nice to grow a watermelon this year, I’ve never tried to do it before.
I’m crossing my fingers and hoping for a watermelon too! Too bad about the eaten and lost plants 🙁
oooh, I definitely want to plant those next season, so pretty!
have your tomatoes turned red yet? mine are still green and hard! we had two ripen on 7/15 and so far no others… weird.
Nice looking squash! I had a butternut squash set about two weeks ago, but it looks like that’t the only one I’m going to get this year. I’ve had two other non-polinated squash shrivel up and drop off. Ah well, one is better than none!
Delicata’s are delicious! I also love how you don’t have to cut into a huge squash that you can’t use all of in one meal.
We are first-time gardeners (well, unless you count my 4×4 plots as a kid) and have a big patch of only zucchini and delicata. Yum!
So thats what stuff looks like when it is coming in thank you for taking to pics now I know.
P.S. You garden looks awsome!!!
Great photos and what a pretty flowers, especially the white one.