I built a cattle panel arch trellis this spring. One one side im doing super sugar snap peas, and 3 varieties of chinese bitter melon. On the other side im doing chayote, kajari slip melons, and sweet passion musk melons.
@@WellGroundedGardens Happy to share advice on bitter melons. Perhaps my favorite and most nutritious vegetable, period. I have 7 or 8 going at the monent. Question on Kajari . . . what kind of container, if any, did you use, and is there an optimal number of fruits to let each vine set at a time ? Also, are they determinate or indeterminate in their production ?
BTW: If youve never tried bitter melon, I can give you a few recipes ive taught myself that you can look for when dining out. > Cantonese: Sliced Beef with Bitter Melon in Black Bean Garlic Oyster Sauce (yum). > Filipino: Ginisang Ampalya (preserved fish & shrimp paste with mixed veg incl sweet potato, squash, snap beans, bitter melon, and whatever's handy) > Filipino: Pinkabet (basically its scrambled eggs, onions, blanched bitter melon, and diced tomatos, flavored with a little shrimp paste and fresh herbs. There are lots of bitter melon dishes in Southern Indian cuisine, but TBH i'm not a fan of kerala melon ... I like the larger smoother chinese versions much better, both in flavor and texture.
Thanks! In case it’s helpful-I did a prior video on cucumber pruning (using a molecule set 😁): How to prune cucumbers and squash ruclips.net/video/rtLKlb36OcU/видео.html
I have never pruned tomatoes. My plants grow very large, lots of fruit, and I haven't had problems with them not ripening in the PNW. But maybe I should prune. Next year perhaps I will prune a couple to see how they compare to the others. Perhaps you could plan a video showing a couple of unpruned tomato plants over the course of the season compared to other pruned tomato plants to show the difference. I haven't done vertical gardening before, but I think I'm going to give it a try next season. Good video!
Thanks! You may not need to prune; I used to live in eastern WA and the low humidity meant I rarely saw diseases on the tomatoes. Here (MI) we get hot, humid summers and I’ll start seeing issues if I don’t prune for airflow. It’s true in most areas but you could well be one of the lucky geographies 🙂. Love the experiment idea-tell me how it goes!
Nice! We had heavy smoke from forest fires, here, and everything took forever to ripen. I think I got two Sugar Babies and three Kajari melons, total 😕
How do you know when the watermelons are ripe? I know when they're on the ground you can watch for that nice, yellow spot, but I don't think you would get one of those with them being in the air like they are on the trellis.
You have to be careful and watch your melons because I had a few get big and the melon grew around a wire . Also check your nets around them they get tight and they start growing into the netting. I got all or most of my female in the middle of august and it doesn’t have enough summer left to grow them big. I did get two 40 pounders and they were delicious. They had so much water my countertop over flowed with the juices.
Nice! We had very low sun levels this year due to the wildfires, and I only have two Sugar Baby types. Neither came even close to testing the limits of their nets. Super small 😂
I have arched cattle Pannel trellis 5 in a row. Looks like 25’ tunnel. Anyway what plant is next to the mini melon? I read melon and cucumber aren’t campions?
This was a few years back but if I recall I had pole beans and tomatoes on there along with the watermelon. There may also have been one cucumber plant-they’re the same plant family (Cucurbits) and will potentially attract some of the same pest insects so you wouldn’t want a huge block of nothing but that family, but I had so many other things on there that it didn’t matter. 👍
I put quite a bit (a full cup) of blood meal into the bottom of the planting hole when I put in the transplants-I do work, generally, to add organic material and compost every year so that the soil is pretty good, overall. But melons are heavy feeders and benefit from the boost of nitrogen from the blood meal
I have a 3x6 raised bed and I'm going to plant sugar babies and grow them vertically on a cattle panel trellis. I'd like to plant non-climbing veggies also, either behind or under the arch. Do tou have any suggestions?
You could plant greens under the arch, and when it gets hot and the watermelons leaf out and take over, they’ll provide some shade to help stop the greens from bolting. :) I also like to plant some pollinator plants like borage or holy Basil along the base of the trellis to help with better pollination of the watermelon.
@@WellGroundedGardens thank you for sharing that information. Do you know what size/gauge fence would be strong enough for a trellis for sugar babies? I am having trouble locating cattle panel in my area.
Hey, we used 6’ T posts and the cattle panels were 8’ long and just over 4’ wide. We had to connect two panels at the top and would have used 16’ lengths if we could’ve figured out how to get them home.
I use a bulb planter to create the planting hole, and add about one cup (240 mL) of blood meal before adding the watermelon transplant. For the soil prep, in general, see: ruclips.net/video/d15vlOgVEY0/видео.html
I am really struggling. I added watermelons to my garden thinking I could grow them vertically but the kind I purchased are Jubilee which get very large apparently. can I grow these on a trellis? If so, any suggestions on what kind? I'm limited on space. I only have 2 plants. Thanks! Your videos are very helpful 😁
Yeah, the large varieties will take down a trellis-or the fruits snap off at the sem under their own weight. I am growing Sugar Baby watermelons on mine plus a Kajari melon and several spaghetti squash. Those are all small fruits and worth a shot!
I go by the tendril closest to the fruit: when it is dried up and brown, the melon is ready 👍 I also gently lift the fruit; it should feel WEIRDLY heavy for its size. But the tendril is my best method.
We grow peas beforehand in the spring, then tomatoes and beans along with the watermelon. Every year I attempt Kanjari melons and every year they fail, but I’m sure I’ll try again this year. This year’s beans will be Cherokee Trail of Tears and Good Mother Stallard.
I haven’t, but I think it would work. I’d probably limit it to 3 plants total on one of these trellises (mine are 8’ wide) and give extra nitrogen in the planting hole, like blood meal or composted chicken manure, to boost the soil nutrition
Thank you for showing your process! 🌿
I’m glad that it’s helpful!
Very good delivery and topic coverage! Most appreciated.
Thank you! I’m glad it was helpful. :)
Wow, exactly the info I was looking for. Excellent guide! Thanks.
I’m glad! 👍
I built a cattle panel arch trellis this spring. One one side im doing super sugar snap peas, and 3 varieties of chinese bitter melon. On the other side im doing chayote, kajari slip melons, and sweet passion musk melons.
Nice! I’ve never tried bitter melon but grew kajari for the first time last year and LOVED them!
@@WellGroundedGardens Happy to share advice on bitter melons. Perhaps my favorite and most nutritious vegetable, period. I have 7 or 8 going at the monent.
Question on Kajari . . . what kind of container, if any, did you use, and is there an optimal number of fruits to let each vine set at a time ? Also, are they determinate or indeterminate in their production ?
BTW: If youve never tried bitter melon, I can give you a few recipes ive taught myself that
you can look for when dining out.
> Cantonese: Sliced Beef with Bitter Melon in Black Bean Garlic Oyster Sauce (yum).
> Filipino: Ginisang Ampalya (preserved fish & shrimp paste with mixed veg incl sweet potato, squash, snap beans, bitter melon, and whatever's handy)
> Filipino: Pinkabet (basically its scrambled eggs, onions, blanched bitter melon, and diced tomatos, flavored with a little shrimp paste and fresh herbs.
There are lots of bitter melon dishes in Southern Indian cuisine, but TBH i'm not a fan of kerala melon ... I like the larger smoother chinese versions much better, both in flavor and texture.
I’ve started growing my cucumbers on a trellis, great info….👍
Thanks! In case it’s helpful-I did a prior video on cucumber pruning (using a molecule set 😁):
How to prune cucumbers and squash
ruclips.net/video/rtLKlb36OcU/видео.html
Thank you for the great info. Great tips on early termination. Didn’t know about male versus female.
Glad it was useful. :)
Thank you for you explanation. This is very helpful information that I haven't heard elsewhere. I'm planting a lot more watermelons this year.
It’s dicey for me here in Michigan but if I choose the smaller varieties and keep them up on the trellis, I can usually get 4-5 good fruits 👍
I have never pruned tomatoes. My plants grow very large, lots of fruit, and I haven't had problems with them not ripening in the PNW. But maybe I should prune. Next year perhaps I will prune a couple to see how they compare to the others. Perhaps you could plan a video showing a couple of unpruned tomato plants over the course of the season compared to other pruned tomato plants to show the difference. I haven't done vertical gardening before, but I think I'm going to give it a try next season. Good video!
Thanks! You may not need to prune; I used to live in eastern WA and the low humidity meant I rarely saw diseases on the tomatoes. Here (MI) we get hot, humid summers and I’ll start seeing issues if I don’t prune for airflow. It’s true in most areas but you could well be one of the lucky geographies 🙂. Love the experiment idea-tell me how it goes!
😮3. ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤u
Lovely share
Thanks! We did the exact same thing, again, this year. Still love it.
Thank you. This vid was just what i was looking for.
I’m glad!
Thank you
Glad it was helpful 😊
Thank you for taking the time. Time to plant! Blessings... daisy
Planting time: the happiest time of the year :)
How far apart did you space each plant when you planted them? Looks great!!
Thanks! Two feet (or 60 centimeters)
"Fruit Pinatas" are cool. Great info!
They honestly could be amazingly fun at a birthday party, come to think of it 😂
I grew charlston grey water melon in my baycounty garden this yesr and got several ripe witch surprised me.
Nice! We had heavy smoke from forest fires, here, and everything took forever to ripen. I think I got two Sugar Babies and three Kajari melons, total 😕
How do you know when the watermelons are ripe? I know when they're on the ground you can watch for that nice, yellow spot, but I don't think you would get one of those with them being in the air like they are on the trellis.
I look at the tendril closest to the fruit; it turns from green to brown as the fruit ripens
Informative.
I’m glad!
You have to be careful and watch your melons because I had a few get big and the melon grew around a wire . Also check your nets around them they get tight and they start growing into the netting. I got all or most of my female in the middle of august and it doesn’t have enough summer left to grow them big. I did get two 40 pounders and they were delicious. They had so much water my countertop over flowed with the juices.
Nice! We had very low sun levels this year due to the wildfires, and I only have two Sugar Baby types. Neither came even close to testing the limits of their nets. Super small 😂
Very informative
I’m glad!
I have arched cattle Pannel trellis 5 in a row.
Looks like 25’ tunnel. Anyway what plant is next to the mini melon?
I read melon and cucumber aren’t campions?
This was a few years back but if I recall I had pole beans and tomatoes on there along with the watermelon. There may also have been one cucumber plant-they’re the same plant family (Cucurbits) and will potentially attract some of the same pest insects so you wouldn’t want a huge block of nothing but that family, but I had so many other things on there that it didn’t matter. 👍
Great video, exactly the information I was looking for!
I’m so glad it’s helpful!
What kind of soil prep is needed for melons?
I put quite a bit (a full cup) of blood meal into the bottom of the planting hole when I put in the transplants-I do work, generally, to add organic material and compost every year so that the soil is pretty good, overall. But melons are heavy feeders and benefit from the boost of nitrogen from the blood meal
I have a 3x6 raised bed and I'm going to plant sugar babies and grow them vertically on a cattle panel trellis. I'd like to plant non-climbing veggies also, either behind or under the arch. Do tou have any suggestions?
You could plant greens under the arch, and when it gets hot and the watermelons leaf out and take over, they’ll provide some shade to help stop the greens from bolting. :) I also like to plant some pollinator plants like borage or holy Basil along the base of the trellis to help with better pollination of the watermelon.
@@WellGroundedGardens thank you for sharing that information. Do you know what size/gauge fence would be strong enough for a trellis for sugar babies? I am having trouble locating cattle panel in my area.
I'm thinking of growing Sugar Baby watermelon next year. How long do the vines normally grow?
Mine are widely varied; some set fruit after growing only 6’ and others went a good 10’ before their first fruit.
very helpful, thanks
I’m glad!
What are the dimensions of the cattle panel and the T posts you used?
Hey, we used 6’ T posts and the cattle panels were 8’ long and just over 4’ wide. We had to connect two panels at the top and would have used 16’ lengths if we could’ve figured out how to get them home.
Oh my first ive heard of pruning watermelon suckers
In theory optional, but I highly recommend keeping them in check :)
How to prepare the soil. Thank you
I use a bulb planter to create the planting hole, and add about one cup (240 mL) of blood meal before adding the watermelon transplant. For the soil prep, in general, see:
ruclips.net/video/d15vlOgVEY0/видео.html
@@WellGroundedGardens thank you very much.
I am really struggling. I added watermelons to my garden thinking I could grow them vertically but the kind I purchased are Jubilee which get very large apparently. can I grow these on a trellis? If so, any suggestions on what kind? I'm limited on space. I only have 2 plants. Thanks! Your videos are very helpful 😁
Yeah, the large varieties will take down a trellis-or the fruits snap off at the sem under their own weight. I am growing Sugar Baby watermelons on mine plus a Kajari melon and several spaghetti squash. Those are all small fruits and worth a shot!
How do you know when to harvest? There’s no yellow spot, since it’s not on the ground, and I harvested my last one too early! 😖
I go by the tendril closest to the fruit: when it is dried up and brown, the melon is ready 👍 I also gently lift the fruit; it should feel WEIRDLY heavy for its size. But the tendril is my best method.
How did your watermelon turn out?
This was a few years ago, but they turned out great until deer broke in and ate them 😕🤷♀️
Hi. Not sure if anyone suggested this already but how to prune herbs, in particular lemon balm
Interesting!
Hi, other than beans, what do you have growing with the watermelon? Also, what type of beans do you have?
We grow peas beforehand in the spring, then tomatoes and beans along with the watermelon. Every year I attempt
Kanjari melons and every year they fail, but I’m sure I’ll try again this year. This year’s beans will be Cherokee Trail of Tears and Good Mother Stallard.
PS I’ll never grow on cages again it was a pain .
Yeah I reserve those only for paste tomatoes.
Have you ever grown sugar babies and cantaloupe in same bed? We have a 5x10 raised bed we wanted to try growing both w a cattle panel.
I haven’t, but I think it would work. I’d probably limit it to 3 plants total on one of these trellises (mine are 8’ wide) and give extra nitrogen in the planting hole, like blood meal or composted chicken manure, to boost the soil nutrition
Watermelon 🍉
Trying it again, this year 👍
Thank you
Glad it was helpful!