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Post by Jim on Jan 10, 2010 14:02:07 GMT -5
I'm in the market for small early melons. Any suggestions?
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Post by Alan on Jan 10, 2010 20:17:03 GMT -5
Hey Jim,
What kind of melons? For a smaller type fruit with a relatively early season of the musk variety it is hard to beat Jenny Lind.
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Post by canadamike on Jan 10, 2010 20:51:31 GMT -5
I'd add Minnessota Midget, Gnadenfeld, Altai to the lot, and also PETIT GRIS DE RENNES, maybe the best in the world. But if you like green flesh, I agree with Alan that Jenny Lind is wonderful. And also very very responsive to good care and foliar feeding with kelp and compost tea. I have achieved huge harvests with it doing so. It responds very well to extra care, more so than most.
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Post by castanea on Jan 10, 2010 22:10:15 GMT -5
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Post by Jim on Jan 13, 2010 12:14:03 GMT -5
I don't really care the color or type. My kids aren't picky. I just prefer the small fruits.
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Post by bluelacedredhead on Jan 13, 2010 13:39:35 GMT -5
Schoon's Hardshell, Collective Farm Woman and Cream of Saskatchewan all grew to maturity in Zone 4B/5A for me. I like the flavour of the Schoon's.
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Post by canadamike on Jan 13, 2010 19:22:04 GMT -5
blue is right, I forgot collective farm woman... and haogen too.....
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Post by Dan on Jan 14, 2010 17:39:22 GMT -5
whatever you grow Jim, I have to try
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Post by bluelytes on Feb 15, 2010 14:15:53 GMT -5
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Post by canadamike on Feb 15, 2010 18:46:25 GMT -5
It is my favorite watermelon, earlier and more productive than Blacktail Mountain here, and also tastes better. And I am not the only one thinking like that, I have had many folks tell me that.
If I could only grow one watermelon, it would always be Early Canada.
But in my experience, in melons and watermelons like in tomatoes, lateness is usually more reliable than earliness. These crops are fruits, and being so depend a lot more on environmental conditions than root crops. Early Canada has always been the most reliable for me, but I am not a huge watermelon fan, so I grew a lot but not as much as a watermelon afficionnado.
There is usually not much difference between the early and the main season ones. Jubilee gave me good melons just a few days later, not enough to consider it a change of ''earliness class'' so to say, so did Osh Kyrghistan, however its true name is writen .
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Post by Alan on Feb 15, 2010 19:51:43 GMT -5
How can you not be a big fan of watermelon? I would trade all the muskmelons, cantaloupes, and exotic melons in the world for watermelon, which is probably why I'm devoting so much research, development, and space to them this year and coming years. I'll be doing a little selection for you northern guys too and also I'll be making some crosses between some high brix icebox types as well as high brix icebox types to larger type melons! Oh, and don't forget those fantastic Showell varieties that I'm keen on re-introducing!
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Post by canadamike on Feb 15, 2010 20:32:47 GMT -5
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Post by castanea on Feb 15, 2010 21:17:31 GMT -5
How can you not be a big fan of watermelon? I would trade all the muskmelons, cantaloupes, and exotic melons in the world for watermelon, which is probably why I'm devoting so much research, development, and space to them this year and coming years. I'll be doing a little selection for you northern guys too and also I'll be making some crosses between some high brix icebox types as well as high brix icebox types to larger type melons! Oh, and don't forget those fantastic Showell varieties that I'm keen on re-introducing! I love all kinds of melons but to me nothing comes close to a watermelon. Has anyone grown or eaten the Illiniwek Red Seeded Watermelon? I've been emailing someone who says it has wonderful flavor and crisp flesh, along with good size, a thick rind and red seeds. Here's the USDA info: PI 608047 Citrullus lanatus var. lanatus CUCURBITACEAE Local name: Illiniwek Red Seeded Watermelon. Donated from: Illinois , United States Maintained by the Southern Regional PI Station. NPGS received: 25-May-1999. PI assigned: 1999. Inventory volume: 208. Life form: Annual. Form received: Seed. Accession backed up at second site. Accession names and identifiers Illiniwek Red Seeded Watermelon Type: LOCALNAME. Ames 25367 Type: SITE. Group: AMES . Comment: NC-7 Research Numbers. Availability Material is available for distribution. The normal amount distributed is 25 seeds
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Post by castanea on Feb 15, 2010 21:22:14 GMT -5
Illiniwek Red Seeded Watermelon Attachments:
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Post by castanea on Feb 15, 2010 21:23:04 GMT -5
Illiniwek Red Seeded Watermelon seeds Attachments:
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