Heirloom Orange Flesh Honeydew Melons

[sbh]

I live in northern CA. This season our orange flesh honeydew melons are struggling with the 100 degree heat. They are planted in an above ground plot using retaining wall brick. Their leaves just curl up and wither. There are quite a few melons on these vines. They look great. Should I be watering more or maybe tent them in the afternoon when it is hottest? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[BeckyW]

how often are you watering? And is your watering DEEP watering or just surface watering? Deep watering is the key. (And never in the afternoon -- watering should be very early morning or during the evening/night, not when the plant is "shut down" to conserve moisture every afternoon.) Your soil type/structure will also play a role in how often to water.

Hopefully someone more expert will weigh in here. Wilted leaves in the afternoon is not necessarily a bad sign. But if the plant is not recovering in the evening/by next daybreak then you've got an issue with soil moisture.

Happy Gardening --
BeckyW

[sbh]

Thank you Becky! It's an above ground planter, pretty large, but it drys out quickly. I stopped extra watering in the afternoon and fashioned a sun block that will shade the plants in the late afternoon. So far so good. I know it's not good to overwater, but they were so wilted.

[Desert Rat]

sbh, it's not uncommon for melon and squash plants to wilt down in the heat but if they perk up in the evening they're okay. A lot of people see the wilt and think they need water and overwater and sometimes kill them. My melons and squash have withstood 110+ deg. heat in full sun with watering every other day and still going strong. The bricks can retain a lot of heat though and could be a factor.

[ChristinaJoMD]

Are they mulched?

If not, water very well and then mulch the heck out of them!

[sbh]

Thank you all for your great advice. We did harvest our first one today. It's dessert tonite!