Photo courtesy of o205billege at flickr.com.

Some of us find it difficult to tell when a melon on the vine is ready to be picked, short of thumping on the fruit — which isn’t necessarily effective, since different melons “thump” differently. Instead of thumping, try these methods.

For honeydew, cantaloupe, and other muskmelons, keep an eye on the spot where the stem joins the fruit. If you see one wasp drinking nectar from the join, leave it there for a day or two; the stem is starting to separate from the melon.

If you see two wasps drinking, shoo them away and pick the melon immediately. Three wasps drinking means that the stem has completely or almost completely separated, and you should pick the melon right away. This method assumes, of course, that you don’t mind wasps taking the occasional sip. But don’t worry — they won’t take much.

For larger melons, especially watermelons, just rotate the fruit upward until you can see the underside. If it’s a rich, golden yellow, the melon is just about ready to be picked. Check the stem next to the melon; if it seems to be completely dried up, the melon’s ready to be harvested and eaten immediately.

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This entry was posted on Friday, November 14th, 2008 at 5:00 am and is filed under Gardening Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.