How long do watermelons take to ripen

**sofasurfer** · 08-25-2014, 12:50 PM

We started our first garden late this year...around late just I think. Doing pretty well though. Lots of cucumbers, although I do not like them as they are a pickeling variety and have an odd flavor. Our onions are doing well as are the peppers. The cabbages...well, those are a lost cause because they are getting eaten at night. We had one strawberry plant that was the first thing I planted. Rabbits got that too. We now have a dedicated strawberry bed with bird netting over it. 90 plant in there. Don't know if they will produce this year or not (I live in S.E. Michigan). We have one watermellon that is about 8-10 inches long. In the last week of so 4 more mellons have appeared. My question is, will the mellons ripen this year?

**hunter63** · 08-25-2014, 12:59 PM

Did you plant from seed?...or buy plants?....When did you plant.?
What variety are they?....Seed package should give "days to maturity" which may vary but does give a general.

Do you keep notes?

**kyratshooter** · 08-25-2014, 01:25 PM

Your watermelon probably will not ripen in that climate zone in that length of time. Watermelons have to go in early up there to mature. You never know. Some varieties are not much bigger than what you state and you might have a watermelon party before the first hard frost.

I have the same problem with okra in north KY. Our season is not hot enough for them to flourish. I get a bit to eat late in the season but not the production I used to get in TN, where the plants grew to 6 feet and produced from late June into October.

When I say I am in KY most people think of the sunny south but I am almost as far north in latitude as Indianapolis. My garden comes in about one month latter here than where I grew up and I have to make adjustments for a short growing season.

**LowKey** · 08-25-2014, 08:37 PM

I live in MA and gave up on any kind of melon up here. You have to start them so early in the year to get them off to a start where they will ripen before fall frosts. I've planted them as early as March 1 and still they don't ripen. Except for one year. Some kind of heirloom charantais melon actually worked but I lost the seed (mildew) and haven't found any in the catalogs since. Most melons including watermelon take 80-110 days from seed. Longer if your spring is cold.

It's late August. If your strawberries have not fruited by now you can pretty much scratch off this year. I always get a few plants out there that sport a few flowers around now, but the major crop is mid to late June.

**rupertsilva10** · 09-03-2014, 10:58 PM

It is extremely difficult to tell if a watermelon is already ripe by just looking. It must be examined carefully. I had a difficult time growing watermelons last year and even gave it up. It usually takes 80 or so days after you plant it from seed.

**Rick** · 09-04-2014, 07:33 AM

If you planted by seed then days to maturity should be listed on the package. If you purchased plants then google that variety and it should tell you how many days to it takes. Compare that to your average first frost and you'll know if you will be successful. I gave up growing them a long time ago. All I ever managed to grow were softballs.