With the new arrival of summer, the season of summer fruits such as melon or watermelon also arrives . Two foods that can quench our thirst due to their large amount of water. There is nothing like growing your own food, so we are going to propose that you grow your own melons and watermelons without leaving your home.
Oh, don’t you have a garden? Don’t worry. They are plants that can grow without problems in a pot , as long as some things that we will tell you about below are taken into account.
Cucumis melo (Melon)
The melon or melonera, whose scientific name is Cucumis melo , is an annual creeping herbaceous plant native to practically the entire planet. It was already cultivated in Ancient Egypt (about 5,000 years ago) for its fruit, the melon, which has a sweet taste.
The seeds need heat to germinate, therefore the ideal planting time is in spring, after the risk of frost has passed. We can collect the fruits about 4-5 months after planting them.
Citrullus lanatus (Watermelon)
The watermelon , whose scientific name is Citrullus lanatus , is native to the African continent. It is an annual creeping herbaceous plant, widely cultivated in many parts of the world, especially in Asia.
Its seeds are sown in spring . And the seedlings bloom towards the beginning of summer. We will be able to start harvesting the fruits in August-September.
Tips
Seedbeds
We can use anything we can think of as seedbeds : trays, yogurt cups, ice cream tubs (plastic), etc. We will fill it with substrate for seedbeds and we will place a maximum of two seeds in each one, in full sun, and with frequent watering in order to keep the soil always moist.
Transplant
The transplant will be done once the plants have two to three pairs of true leaves . Only then will it be time to move them to the ground or to larger pots.
To Earth
If we plant our plants in the ground, it will be convenient to leave a distance of at least 40cm between them, so that they can grow properly and thus bear a greater quantity of fruits.
Watering should be practically daily , especially if we live in a dry climate.
potted
To be able to grow melons or watermelons in pots, it will be important to have large or very large pots, or even make them ourselves by recycling a tire.
Being creeping plants, we will have these pots on the ground so that they can grow their stems without problems. Watering should also be frequent, but avoiding waterlogging.
And now yes, all that remains is to wait for the fruits to ripen in order to savor them. Have a good harvest!
