
Plant about 2 Ibs. seed per acre. 
een 7 ermelons 
GROWING WATERMELONS 
CULTURE—To successfully grow watermelons it is abso- 
lutely necessary to have S00d seed. Then select proper soil 
and give it proper cultivation and irrigation (if under irriga- 
tion) and if not prepare the land to drain off or retain the 
moisture, depending upon whether you get much or little rain- 
fall, and the results are usually very good. 
Select a well-drained sandy loam; new sod land is best; any 
good loamy soil which is well drained is good. 
If under irrigation run large furrows 8 feet apart and plant 
the hills well up on the border 8 to 10 feet apart. Be careful 
not to irrigate too often. Plant to a depth of about one inch. 
Shallower early when the soil is cold and slightly deeper for 
late planting. 
Watermelons are lovers of drouth and the finest melons are 
frown under semi-arid conditions. 
Plow deep and harrow well to make a fine seed bed. A lib- 
eral coat of stable manure disced in before plowing will in- 
crease the size and yield. 
If not under irrigation, plow the land in ridges by first 
throwing out a dead furrow, then back-furrowing into the 
dead furrow four or five furrows from each side. Some advo- 
cate no harrowing in windy sections, leaving the soil rough 
for the reason that vines cling to the ground and are not 
whipped about. 
Do most of the cultivating with the harrow, setting the 
teeth straight and cultivate deep. 
It is sometimes desirable to turn the ends of the runners 
when they begin to reach out across the row and give an extra 
cultivation. This should be done carefully so as not to damage 
the small melons. This sometimes results in a delay in the 
setting of fruit. 
Keep a fine mulch on the surface and do not let any weeds 
grow. 
If you use commercial fertilizer mix it thoroughly with the 
soil around the hill, but do not leave any lumps under the 
hills where the first roots will reach it, or it will burn the 
roots and check the growth if not kill the plant. 
Some southern growers advocate the use of up to 700 Ibs. 
of fertilizer per acre, analyzing about 8% phosphoric acid, 6% 
potash, 6% ammonia, preferably made from nitrate of soda; \ 
cotton seed meal, dried blood, super phosphate, muriate and 
sulphate of potash. Use two applications, applying 2/3 the 
amount before planting and the balance as a side dressing as 
the vines begin to run. 
DO NOT plant on land where melons were grown before, 
even if four or five years before, if you have other good land. 
The vines remove something from the soil not readily re- 
placed, and following crops usually produce deformed melons 
with black ends or shriveled ends, even from the best of seeds, 
while the same seed on adjoining land, where melons have 
not been grown before, will produce large melons of the finest 
quality. Sometimes, due to unfavorable growing conditions, 
the first set will produce some ill-shaped or black-ended mel- 
ons. These should be pulled from the vines, allowing more 
shapely melons to set on. 
Do not press on melons to see if they are ripe. This injures 
them and results in very poor melons. A slight thump with 
the finger, if the sound rings clear and a high tone, indicates 
a green melon; if a hollow, low tone, or rather dead tone, the 
melon is ripe. 
Usually the curl where the melon attaches to the vine dies 
when the melon is ripe. By a little practice you can tell by 
the color. A bright, growing color indicates a green melon; a 
dull green indicates ripeness. 
WILL WATERMELONS AND PUMPKIN MIX? 
Each year we receive a number of letters asking if water- 
melons and pumpkin will mix, also regarding cantaloupe and 
cucumber, and squash and cantaloupe. None of these species 
will mix with the others except some pumpkin with some 
squash. If pumpkins are grown next to watermelons so that 
the vines intermingle there is a possibility that the water- 
melons will absorb some of the pumpkin flavor. For this rea- 
son it is also a good plan to keep watermelon fields free of 
weeds as certain of these will have effect on the flavor. 


See page 90 for Special Prices to Market Growers 45 
