Back in spring, I sowed several melon seeds, saved from a supermarket specimen the year before. One managed to grow enough to be planted out in a container on my patio. There it grew--slowly--gently trained up a stick I'd put in to support it. I nipped off the growing tip once it reached the top of the stick (approximately as tall as me).
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| Here it is, Sep 2018 |
It proceeded to flower in late summer (very small flowers), and a few fruits formed--only to fall off. Just one fruit stayed, and this one formed maybe late August. By mid-September, the vine was wilting, much like the cucumber plants did. That one fruit however, only the size of a lemon, still remained.
A week ago we had strong winds. After three days, it calmed down and I realized the melon had fallen off its vine. It had slug damage and a bit of mold on part of it. But looking closely past the slug bites, I could see the inside was green and shiny--it looked ripe!
I cut off the damaged part; I salvaged two tiny seeds to try next year. The husband, son and I shared the fruit: it was perfectly sweet and juicy. I actually grew a melon!
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| About four bites, Oct 2018 |
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