The scientific name for watermelon is Citrullus lanatus. Vine borers and cucumber beetles are two pests in particular that you need to keep an eye out for. Now, for all the usual hot weather veggies like beans, cowpeas, corn, squashes, pumpkins, cucumbers, watermelons, gourds and sunflowers, you should plant those seeds directly into the ground around August 6. Please review ourPrivacy Statementfor more information. Plant the seeds in raised rows or "hills" if there is any danger of flooding or standing water. Cooperative Extension System. It is natural for watermelon leaves to wilt during the warmest portion of the day; but, by the time midnight rolls around, the leaves shouldnt still be wilted. How to Plant Watermelons You can direct sow watermelons in the garden after all danger of frost has passed, or you can start watermelons indoors in paper or peat pots two to four weeks before your last frost date. Its typically a range like 80 to 120 days. Everyone seems to love juicy watermelon in the summertime. This will guarantee that your plants have adequate room to grow.2. Stems should be cut with a sharp knife close to thefruit. All images and content are copyrighted 2021 by Urban Farmer LLC. Taking just 70 days to mature, these watermelons have an outer yellow skin but a pink flesh inside. Please review ourPrivacy Statementfor more information. Watermelons can be a great crop for home production, as well as commercial production. Would I have better results if I culled back to one per vine? ). Please let us know if you have accessibility needs. Plant onions in early spring once the ground is workable. Watermelons can be planted directly in the garden after all danger of frost has passed. Plant the pieces about 3 inches deep, 10 to 12 inches apart, in rows about 36 inches apart. Furthermore, in Alabama, the best planting date for spinach is from the 15th of February to the 15th of March. It is important to make sure that the watermelon fruits do not come into contact with the dirt while they are developing. Using the planting schedules below will help you get the most out of your garden. Planting numerous seeds at once is a good practice to get into in the beginning of the watermelon growing process. It typically takes about five calendar weeks for a watermelon to go from flower to ripe fruit. If you want to get the most out of your watermelons, you should pull any weeds that appear early on and then cover the ground with mulch. Plant watermelon from late spring to early summer, once soil temperatures reach 70 F or above. By utilizing a slow-release fertilizer on a consistent basis, you can ensure that they have a steady supply of nutrients to keep them healthy and well-nourished. A hollow sound and a yellow bottom are easy indicators that your watermelon is ready to be picked. The small mini-melons that have become popular over the past few years can be spaced closer, such as 13 or 14 square feet per plant. Temperatures should be 70 o to 80 o F during the day and 65 o to 70 o F during the night. You may also side dress the vines prior to running with a 34-0-0 food at the rate of 1 pound (454 g.) per 100 feet (30 m.) of row or calcium nitrate at 2 pounds . Each watermelon hill should be spaced 3 to 4 feet apart from the other, and each row of watermelon hills should be spaced 8 feet apart. By shopping until you drop, in pursuit of anyone who will sell you a suitable tomato transplant in time for fall planting. The beginning of the summer has gotten off to a sluggish start, but fortunately these cucurbits grow quite quickly under the appropriate conditions. How Many Watermelons per Plant? After about 80 days, your watermelons should be ready to eat! The South's production season is similar to Georgia, starting in either late May or early June. In Alabama especially, watermelon lovers need to be aware of the many pests that might try to make a home on your watermelon such as: spotted and striped cucumber beetles, squash bugs and aphids. Select a site exposed to full sun. A solid thump sound meant ripe. This helps to expose all portions of the watermelon fruit to the warming rays of the sun, which ultimately results in an improvement in the flavor, sweetness, and quality of the fruit. When to Plant Watermelons The growing season may not be warm enough in some northern areas to produce nice watermelons from seed. If you are worried about having too much watermelon to eat at once, you can try the Golden Midget variety of seeds. There must be 6 seeds in each hill. Growing watermelons may take a bit of patience but when you get to sink your teeth into this delicious, juicy fruit, it is all worth it. They are safe to use around shrubs and perennial plants, but they are lethal to the seeds of annual flowering plants. The vines produce both male and female flowers. Plant small seed, such as turnips and carrots, about 14 to 12 inch deep. Can you plant tomatoes in July in Alabama? Conduct a soil test before include any compost or fertilizer in order to determine whether or not your watermelon plants require additional nutrients and, if so, in what amounts. Some recommended seeded watermelon varieties include AU Producer, Crimson Sweet, Jubilee II, Jamboree, Lemon Krush, (yellow flesh), Sangria, Sentinel, Starbright, Summer Gold (yellow flesh), and Top Gun. A couple of recommended icebox/mini melons are Mickey Lee and Sugar Baby. The Extension System can recommend some seedless watermelons if you are interested. Plant watermelon seeds in the garden when the soil temperature reaches 70F (21C), usually 2 to 4 weeks after the last frost in spring. Watermelon is a tropical plant and demands a long, warm, dry growing season with temperatures between 70 and 80F (21-26C) during the day and 60-70F (16-21C) at night. Finally, test your soil for its acidic levels. Tomatoes. Zone 7 Planting Schedule Zone 8 Planting Schedule Zone 9 Planting Schedule Freeze or can the surplus if you want to enjoy your garden all year. They are safe to use around shrubs and perennial plants, but they are lethal to the seeds of annual flowering plants. Overhead irrigation, especially late in the afternoon, is likely to spread certain foliage diseases. However, gardeners in colder climates can still have success in growing watermelons by starting seeds indoorsor purchasing young plants from a nursery, and by growing shorter-season varieties. To control weeds, use a mulch. Melons like watermelons require their room. Each watermelon seedling should be spaced about 2 to 3 feet apart and the hill should be about 5 feet wide. They can also be planted in May or in June for a later harvest. Select the site carefully, plant at the correct time, use the right amount of fertilizer, use adapted varieties, and control pests. Plant the seeds into raised rows, called hills, so your plants will get good drainage. It works with this thump test even in the market. How to Plant Watermelon Seeds. However, they can be grown in the right circumstances. Amend soil with aged manure, seaweed,and/orcompost before planting. and economic well-being. The trick is to wait until the really hot weather has passed, but not wait too long or the plants won't have time to mature before the cold and dark of midwinter. Use biosensitive insecticides as your first choice to treat for insect problems in the garden. Naturally, you should select a kind of watermelon that was developed particularly for growing in containers. Straw or even cardboard can serve as effective ground barriers. Plan to transplant seedlings into the garden about 2 weeks after that date or when the soil has warmed to at least 65F (18C). For zones nine and above, the growing season starts mid-March. Once the watermelons start growing, they may need to be protected. Peppers, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, eggplants and parsley can now be planted all over the state. The watermelon is ripe when there is little contrast between thestripes. In-ground gardens and raised beds are both excellent options for growing onions. Those modest yields from such large plants are nothing to get excited about if you dont have a lot of area to work with. They only grow to be between 24 and 36 inches in length. Everyone is welcome! Taking 80 days to mature, this variety is about 10 pounds in weight. Beets. Alabama's climate allows us to grow carrots and many other root vegetables as both spring and fall crops. Plant around 810 watermelon seeds in each hill, making sure to bury each seed approximately 1 inch below the surface of the soil. Insects can cause harm to watermelons, just as they can to most other types of crops. A hollow sound and a yellow bottom are easy indicators that your watermelon is ready to be picked. After waiting up to 80 days, your watermelons will finally be ready. To begin with, watermelons need very warm soil, so if your winter is lasting longer than you would like, be sure to start your seedlings inside before transplanting them after the threat of frost has definitely passed. Plant well , water a lot and leave the heck alone. The beginning of March and the beginning of August are the two ideal seasons to plant seeds for watermelons. Use only stocky, healthy, fresh plants. Make sure your backyard is friendly to bees and include plenty of other flowers they love to entice them to visit your garden. Be on the lookout for cucumber beetle infestations. While a continental climate is hot enough in the summer to grow watermelons, the winters may be too long to give them enough growing time. Space your mounds to give your plants enough room to spread and grow. Okay, now here are the cold, hard numbers, along with specific plants: Crop. It is recommended that each plant has 24 to 30 square feet to produce the best melons. Space plants about 2 feet apart in a 5-foot-wide hill. Alabama It is best to avoid getting the leaves moist. For more information, contact your county Extension office. Spacing. Below are some things to consider when trying to figure out when to plant watermelon in alabama. The soil should be well drained and free of harmful chemicals, oil, ashes, mortar, etc. New crop in 2009 , we have raw, spiced, roasted, roated and salted for your choice. When to Plant: A fantastic perk of growing vegetables in Alabama is that you can grow something at any of time of year. Potatoes. How late can you plant watermelons in Alabama? A small part seems to be in a dip and will have problems with light freezes. They are very small, weighing just 3 pounds. The main reason for a home garden is to produce high-quality vegetables. (205) 669-9205 Read more. When To Plant Watermelons In Alabama? Roar Diamond desechable de Packwoods, que ofrece 3,5 gramos de delta-8, delta-11, THCb y THCh, hechos de resina viva Nug Run en un vaporizador desechable. They love hot temperatures and warm soil, so should be ok. Plant onions in early spring once the ground is workable. Unlike other typical garden plants, such as tomatoes and peas, watermelons need specific growing conditions and a lot of time. Consider laying black plastic over your planting area in order to warm the soil even more. After waiting up to 80 days, your watermelons will finally be ready. When the watermelon seedlings have reached their full size, pluck two from each group and keep just the strongest watermelon plant. In point of fact, quite a bit of room. The fruit should then be rotated every few days by a few degrees to ensure even ripening. See above and also they tend to develop root rot easily. In this case, simply pinch off any extra buds. cucumber (64), cantaloupe (68), okra (73), pumpkin (75), squash (70), watermelon (72), beans (72), beets (45), cabbage (54), chard (54), eggplant (75), pepper (64), radish (45), tomato (55), turnip (50), and . Once this starts to turn brown, your watermelon is ripe; however, if it becomes fully brown and dead, then you may have waited too long. This will ensure that the watermelons grow to their full potential in terms of sweetness. Watermelon does best when directly sown once soil temperatures reach 70. The best time to direct seed plant watermelons is when soil temperatures have warmed up to 70 degrees. Then, in April, plant the warm-season crops: beans, cucumbers, eggplants, okra, peppers, squash and tomatoes. Don't worry about weeds or grass, none of that will bother the melons and the more cover they have the more likely they will grow. Out of the 44 states that produce watermelons, Texas is one of only five states that consistently leads watermelon production in the U.S. When you water, make an effort to wet the soil directly rather than the leaves, as watering the latter might encourage the growth of fungus. Climate: tropical, sub-tropical; warm and . Using the planting schedules below will help you get the most out of your garden. It is beneficial to conduct soil testing in the late summer and apply any needed lime when planting cover crops. Probably not a good time to plant watermelon. You will need to place a barrier between the watermelons and the earth in order for them to be able to develop to their full potential. Just watch out for rot that can be caused by too much moisture. If adequate light is provided transplants should be ready in three to four weeks. Dig a hole 12" deep and 24" wide, fill with compost, manure, and several handfuls of sand. Space watermelon 3 to 5 feet apart in nutrient-rich, well-drained soil with a pH of 6.0 to 6.8. For more information, contact your county Extension office. Heres how to grow and harvest watermelons in yourgarden. Note that the temperature of your soil should be at least 70 degrees Fahrenheit when you plant. This is due to the fact that after the watermelon vines have reached their full development, it will be tough to get among the vines to pull weeds. Plant watermelon from late spring to early summer, once soil temperatures reach 70 F or above. Cooperative Extension System, Mary Washington (female hybrid), UC-157 (male hybrid), Jersey Giant (male hybrid), Carolina Sieva, Florida Speckled, King of the Garden, Green Comet, Green Duke, Packman, Premium Crop, Mariner, Long Island Improved, Jade Cross Hybrid, Prince Marvel, Bravo, Charleston Wakefield, Round Dutch, Stonehead Savoy Cabbage: Ace, Chantenay, Danvers 126, Lady Fingers, Scarlet Nantes, Thumbelina, Champion, Georgia Southern, Vates, Top Bunch, Silver Queen, Golden Queen, Seneca Chief, How Sweet It Is, Merit, Snow Belle, Black Beauty, Black Belle, Classic, Ghost Buster, Ichiban, Leafy lettuces: Blackseeded Simpson, Salad Bowl, Red Sails, AUrora, Ambrosia, Chilton, Gulf Coast, Athena, Florida Broadleaf, Giant Southern Curled, Red Giant, Clemson Spineless, Emerald, Lee, Burgundy, Fresh bulb: Granex 33, Grano 502, Grano 1015 Long-storing bulb: Yellow, White, Red, Little Marvel, Green Arrow, Snappy, Victory Freezer, Pinkeye Purple Hull, Mississippi Purple, Mississippi Silver, Freeze Green, Hot: Cayenne, Super Chili, Habanero, Hungarian Wax, Jalapeno, Red LaSoda, Red Pontiac, Sebago, Superior, Autumn Gold, Connecticut Field, Baby Bear, Jack Be Little, Peak A Boo, Spookie, Cherry Belle, Scarlet Globe, White Icicle, Dixie, Yellow Crookneck, Yellow Straightneck, Cocozelle, Freedom III, Lemondrop (straightneck), Prelude III (crookneck), Sundrops, Tivoli; Zucchini: Elite, Acorn, Cream of the Crop, Winter Butternut, Vegetable Spaghetti Squash, Atkinson, Better Boy, Big Beef, Celebrity, Husky Gold, Monte Carlo, Small Fry and Sweet Chelsea (cherries), Bush Sugar Baby, Charleston Gray, Crimson Sweet, AU Golden Producer (yellow meat), Posted by: Kerry Smith, Mary Beth Musgrove, Joe Kemble, Ellen Bauske, David Williams, and Dean Bond. When to plant spinach in alabama? Set tall plants deeper in the ground than they grew originally. Mickey Lee and Sugar Baby are two varieties of icebox or mini-melon that come highly recommended. If you're saving the seeds to plant, store them in an airtight container in a cool, dry place until planting time. In order for fruit to grow, pollination has to occur via bees or other insects. This will give you a small jump on the growing season. Very sweet, easy to grow, and fit in the fridge easily. Hi Kathy, I was wondering did you receive a answer on your quest for sweet water melons that use to be common to get? This is a lot of space but watermelons need plenty of soil nutrients and plenty of space to grow, so dont overcrowd them. The area chosen for collard greens planting should be in full sun. Read and heed it for effective use and safety. Kale. Plants grown in soil with a pH that is lower than 6.0 will have yellow leaves and may or may not develop any fruit at all. Alabama Vegetable Garden Planting Chart Have you ever cultivated watermelons with any degree of success? Additionally, ensure that your young watermelon plants receive consistent irrigation. Depth: to 1-inch seed depth, transplant slightly deeper. If you live in an area of Alabama within USDA plant hardiness zone 8, you can grow Mexican avocados that are hardy down to 19 degrees Fahrenheit; however, you must provide the avocado some protection. Dr. Bill Rhodes, professor of horticulture at Clemson University, offers the following advice on how to tell whenwatermelons areripe: BONUS: Youll also receive our freeBeginner GardeningGuide! So should be ready in three to four weeks such large plants are nothing to get excited if. Temperatures and warm soil, so should be 70 o F during the day and 65 o to degrees! Overcrowd them here are the cold, hard numbers, along with specific plants:.... Climate allows us to grow, pollination has to occur via bees or other insects enough in some areas. 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