Gardeners living in Mediterranean climates can plant watermelon (Citrullus lanatus), a warm-weather crop, as early as May. If the garden plot you need for melons is taken by a cool-weather crop until June, you can catch up quickly by starting seeds indoors so that they'll be ready to set out in June. If you've selected a space-saving, early-bearing watermelon like "Bush Sugar Baby," you'll be able to harvest the juicy fruits while the days remain warm.
Start seeds indoors in mid- to late April, or six weeks before your anticipated planting date. Sow seeds 1 inch deep in pots with drainage holes and filled with sterilized potting soil or seed-starting medium. Set seedlings on a sunny windowsill once they germinate in about 10 days, and keep the seedlings well watered.
Prepare the watermelon patch by working a 4-inch layer of compost into the garden bed to a depth of 6 to 8 inches.
Create a planting mound for every three "Bush Sugar Baby" melons you intend to grow. The mounds should be 24 inches in diameter. If you are growing more than three vines, space additional mounds 4 feet apart. The compact vines of "Bush Sugar Baby" grow no longer than 3 or 4 feet.
Set the transplants in their mounds in June. Space three "Bush Sugar Baby" seedlings evenly in each mound.
Mulch between seedlings and between mounds, using straw or wood bark in a 2-inch layer.
Water the newly planted "Bush Sugar Baby" seedlings, being careful to water the soil, not the vines themselves. Watermelons are vulnerable to fungal diseases sometimes caused by wet foliage.
Continue to give the vines a steady supply of water as they grow -- at least 1 inch per week. Watermelons are especially dependent on evenly moist soil.
Add a 1-inch layer of compost around each "Baby Sugar Bush" vine every three weeks, and then water around each vine so the nutrients from the compost leach into the soil.
Remove any extra fruits if the vines produce more than two watermelons, or a single fruit if it appears early in the season. "Bush Sugar Baby" vines bear two fruits per vine. Early single fruits or extra fruits should be removed to encourage optimum size and flavor of the remaining two melons.
Place a board under developing melons to ensure that they don't rot from ground contact, while also keeping them away from soil-dwelling pests.
Monitor "Bush Sugar Baby" vines for cucumber beetles on a regular basis. Handpick the beetles and drop them into soapy water. Cucumber beetles spread diseases that can kill watermelon vines.
Remove aphid infestations by spraying the tiny insects with water from a garden hose. Do this in late morning on a sunny day so the vines have a chance to dry quickly.
Cut back on your watering schedule when the melons reach the size of a tennis ball. Allowing the soil to dry completely between waterings at this stage will result in the sweetest "Bush Sugar Baby" melons.
Harvest the melons when they are about 12 pounds each or 75 to 80 days after sowing.
Things You Will Need
- 4-inch plastic or peat pots
- Seed starting medium or potting soil
- Water mister
- Garden hose or drip irrigation system
- Wooden boards, at least 24 inches wide and long
- Jar or bucket
- Liquid soap
- If you haven't had a chance to plan ahead to start seeds indoors, sow seeds directly into the garden bed in June. In Mediterranean climates, "Bush Sugar Baby" melons will have the 75 to 80 warm-weather days needed before harvest, although you'll be picking them later than you normally would.
- Because they are compact, "Bush Sugar Baby" melons can also be grown in containers. Pots should be at least 18 inches deep, with a trellis in the container or next to it to support the melons. Tie netting to the trellis to fashion a supportive sling under each melon.
- The traditional hill planting system for growing watermelons may not be suitable if you live in an especially dry area, or if your soil is on the sandy side. In such cases, grow in inverted hills by digging an area 1 inch deep and 24 inches wide, using the removed soil to create a rim around the inverted area. Set three "Bush Sugar Baby" transplants in each inverted hill.