While my plants look very healthy and I have lots of fruit developing, as they grow, some have developed a type of black rot on the blossom end and then they just turn black and dry up. What should I do?
Like tomatoes, peppers, and squash, watermelons can also be affected by blossom end rot. This condition happens due to a calcium deficiency. Calcium helps a plant create a stable structure. If a plant gets too little calcium while the fruit is developing, the end result is what you're experiencing. There are a few things you can try for blossom end rot treatment.
Water evenly, not too much or too little. Add a low nitrogen fertilizer to the soil. he s for optimal calcium uptake. Add lime to balance the soil’s pH if it is too low, (should be between 6.0 and 6.5). Add some gypsum to the soil for additional calcium. In addition, remove affected fruit and use a calcium rich foliar spray on the plant.
I received a watermelon plant from a neighbor who was thinning out her garden. It hasn't started to bear fruit yet; however, when I put it into my garden, it appears to be wilting away. How can I save it?
Curbits normally do not transplant well, but you can try to save it. This article will help: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/environmental/learn-how-to-avoid-and-repair-transplant-shock-in-plants.htm
When watermelons begin to appear, should I pull off other flowers on the plant so energy goes to the melon?
No. Leave the flowers alone. When they are no longer useful to the plant, they will fall off on their own.
Our watermelons were looking fine, then as they started growing, the ends look like they are rotting.
Like tomatoes, peppers, and squash, watermelons can also be affected by blossom end rot. This condition happens due to a calcium deficiency. Calcium helps a plant create a stable structure. If a plant gets too little calcium while the fruit is developing, the end result is what you're experiencing. There are a few things you can try for blossom end rot treatment.
Water evenly, not too much or too little. Add a low nitrogen fertilizer to the soil. he s for optimal calcium uptake. Add lime to balance the soil’s pH if it is too low, (should be between 6.0 and 6.5). Add some gypsum to the soil for additional calcium. In addition, remove affected fruit and use a calcium rich foliar spray on the plant.
We have started growing a watermelon and we were wondering how you stop the plant from growing and let the watermelons grow instead. Does it kill the plant if you cut off some of the shoots that are growing? If you could let me know how to stop the plant from growing without killing it, I would appreciate it. It has a few little watermelons, but how long do they take to get big?
It won't hurt the plant to remove some of the shoots, but you might be better off if you remove some of the female blooms. The watermelons already formed will grow larger with less competition from other fruits. You might find the following article helpful: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/watermelon/growing-watermelon.htm
My watermelons are rotting before they are ready on the end of the fruit. Why?
It sounds like it has blossom end rot. This article will help:
http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/pp/notes/oldnotes/vg19.htm
I live in northern California. I have two 'family fun' breed watermelons that I think are ready to be picked. One is small, like a big cucumber and has a yellow patch on the bottom and sounds hollow but does not show any of the other signs. The other one is bowling ball size, sounds really hollow, is very resistant to my fingernail and has a dull light green color. Also, this one has been stored on wood planks. The two seedlings were planted the first of May and we didn't get fruit until late June. It's been about 50 days since then.
Here is an article that you may find helpful: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/watermelon/pick-a-watermelon.htm
If the tendril is green, you should wait to pick the melon. Harvest when the curled tendril closest to the melon on the vine begins to shrivel and dry up.