How to Grow Melons From Seed

Melons are warm-season vines that cannot take any frost, so timing matters. Direct-sow seeds outdoors only after all danger of frost has passed and the soil has warmed to at least 70F. To gain a few weeks in cooler climates, start seeds indoors 3 to 4 weeks before your last frost and transplant carefully once the weather is settled and warm. In long, hot-summer regions like the South and Southwest you have plenty of season for even the slowest honeydews; in the North and Pacific Northwest, stick to early, short-season types and get them started under cover.

Sow melon seeds about half an inch to an inch deep in warm soil or a warm seed-starting mix kept at 75 to 85F, where they sprout in about 4 to 10 days. Because melons resent root disturbance, start them indoors in peat or paper pots you can plant whole, and give seedlings bright light until it is time to move out. Outdoors, plant on a mounded hill of rich, compost-amended soil in full sun, setting two or three plants per hill with hills spaced 4 to 6 feet apart, or space single plants 18 to 24 inches apart in rows 5 to 6 feet apart. A handful of compost or an inoculant in the planting hole helps the roots get established fast.

Melons are hungry, thirsty vines that reward steady care while they grow. Give them full sun, rich soil, and deep, even watering of about 1 to 2 inches a week, always at the base to keep the leaves dry and disease-free, and mulch to hold warmth and moisture. Feed with compost or a balanced fertilizer at planting and again when the vines start to run, easing off high-nitrogen feeds once flowers appear so the plant makes fruit instead of leaves. Let the vines sprawl over warm ground or train them up a sturdy trellis, supporting each fruit in a cloth or netting sling. As the melons near ripeness, ease off the water so the sugars concentrate and the fruit finishes sweet.

Melons grow well with plants that repel their pests, draw in the pollinators they depend on for fruit set, or share their love of heat and rich soil. Marigolds, nasturtiums, corn, and aromatic herbs like basil all make good neighbors. These three are especially easy to add in one click:

Harvesting is all about reading each type. Netted cantaloupes tell you they are ready by slipping: the stem separates from the fruit with a gentle tug, the netting turns tan and corky, and the blossom end smells sweet and fragrant. Honeydews and canary melons do not slip, so judge them by a rind that has turned fully creamy or bright yellow, a slightly waxy or wrinkled feel, and a blossom end that gives a little when pressed. Pick in the morning, and if you catch a melon a touch early it will soften but not sweeten further off the vine, so let flavor and aroma be your guide.

A sun-ripened home-grown melon is one of summer's great pleasures. Eat cantaloupe and canary types fresh in wedges, cubed into fruit salads, or wrapped in prosciutto, and blend the sweet flesh into smoothies, sorbets, and agua fresca. Honeydew is wonderful chilled, paired with lime and mint, or added to salads with cucumber and feta. Melons are rich in vitamins A and C and are mostly water, making them hydrating and refreshing, and even the seeds can be roasted for a snack. Best of all, a garden melon picked at its peak has a fragrance and sweetness no store-bought fruit can match.

• Poor fruit set: flowers open but no melons form, usually from too few pollinators or cold, wet weather. Plant flowers nearby, avoid spraying while in bloom, and be patient once it warms.
• Bland, watery melons: too little heat and sun, or too much water at the finish. Grow in full sun on warm soil and ease off watering as the fruit ripens so the sugars concentrate.
• Powdery mildew: a white dusty coating on the leaves in humid weather. Space plants for airflow, water at the base, and remove badly affected leaves.
• Cucumber beetles: striped or spotted beetles that chew leaves and spread bacterial wilt. Cover young plants with row cover until flowering, then handpick and use yellow traps.
• Cracked or rotting fruit: from uneven watering or fruit sitting on wet soil. Water evenly, mulch, and set ripening melons on a board, tile, or sling to keep them off damp ground.
• Slow, stalled seedlings: melons hate cold and root disturbance. Keep soil above 70F, start in plantable pots, and do not transplant until the weather is warm and settled.