Breeding and care of melons

Melons require dry, warm, and full-light climate conditions to grow and produce fruit. The optimum temperature range is 18-28oC. At temperatures below 12oC, melons will grow poorly and freeze to death. Melons can be grown at an altitude of 1000m above sea level or lower.

Melons grow well in soil with a thick, rich, well-drained topsoil. pH 6-7. During the growing process, Melons need very little water or drip irrigation.

Breeding and cultivation

Melons are propagated mainly by seeds. The land needs to be plowed thoroughly, weeded and raised. Plants are planted in clumps, each clump has 2-3 seeds, then covered with a 2-3cm thick layer of soil. When the seeds germinate, they will be thinned out to leave large, strong plants. Melons can be planted in furrows, 50-75cm apart and 150-200cm between rows. The planting density is about 10,000-15,000 plants/ha. Seeds can also be sown in nurseries until the seedlings are 4 weeks old, then planted on a large scale. If seeds are sown directly in the field, each hectare requires 1.5-2kg of seeds, but if they are sown in soil balls first, only 0.5kg of seeds per hectare is needed.

Take care of

Melons are often grown on high fields after the rice harvest. Growing melons in rotation with rice often avoids pests and nematodes that are harmful to squash. After harvesting rice, the land is plowed, harrowed, weeded, and raised before planting. Depending on the fertility and structure of the soil, appropriate fertilization methods are selected. To produce 20 tons of fruit, melons take away a large amount of nutrients from the soil, including: 60-120kg of Nitrogen, 20-40kg of P2O5, 120-140kg of K2O, 100-140kg of CaO, and 20-60kg of MgO.

Fertilizer requirements for melons are very high, the amount of organic fertilizer needed is from 20-35 tons/ha. During the growth process, adding diluted NPK fertilizer is very necessary.

In addition, using straw to cover the base of the tree and thinning the leaves and fruits (each tree should only produce 3-5 fruits) are measures that melon growers need to pay attention to.

Pests and diseases

As in many other melon species, wilt is a very dangerous disease caused by the fungus Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. melonis. To deal with these diseases, it is necessary to choose melon varieties with strong disease resistance. Powdery mildew Sphaerothoca fuliginae and Erysiphe cichoracearum on melons can be prevented by fungicides. In addition, some F1 hybrid lines that are resistant to fungi can be grown. Downy mildew (pseudoperonospora cubensis) is a very dangerous disease for melons in hot and humid climates. Fungicides can be used to prevent this disease. Gum ooze on plants is caused by Dydimella bryoniae in hot and humid climates. Sooty mold Glomerella cingulata and leaf spot caused by Pseodomonas syringae also often appear in many areas.

In addition, there is the root rot bacteria Erwinia tracheipilia transmitted by aphids, leafhoppers and insects.

Some other pathogenic viruses such as squash virus, watermelon virus, papaya virus and golden mosaic virus, all caused by the flea Aphis gossipii, also cause great harm to the growth and development of melons.

Thrips, leeches, fleas, fruit moths, beetles, leaf-eating caterpillars and flies that damage young fruit are also common in melon growing areas. Root nematodes are also found.

Active prevention measures include choosing disease-resistant melon varieties, rotating crops with rice, and treating the soil with fungicides before planting.

According to rauhoaquavietnam.vn - LY