A Detailed Guide to Growing and Eating Horned Melon (Oriental Melon) Seeds

Horned melon, many people may not know what this is when they do not see the word "melon". In fact, it is also a type of melon, with pale green skin and bright yellow flesh, and like watermelon it is a great way to cool down in summer. What are the growing methods and eating methods for this fruit? Let's take a look together.

How to grow horned melon seeds

1. It is suitable for trellis cultivation in greenhouses. For greenhouse cultivation, keep about 2000 plants per mu, train the main vine upward, and keep fruit above the 4th-5th leaf; no fruit-setting hormone spray is needed. During the fruiting period, increase the day-night temperature difference, and appropriately control nitrogen fertilizer and irrigation to prevent excessive growth from affecting fruit set. For the first crop of fruit, keep 3-4 fruits per plant. When female flowers appear at the 6th-10th leaf, pinch the tips at the same time so that fruits can set simultaneously and swell at the same time, making the fruits uniform.

2. After fruit set, leave 1 leaf before the fruit on the fruiting lateral vine and pinch off the tip, and remove all growing points above it. Generally, when the main vine grows to 25-30 true leaves and is about 40 cm from the greenhouse roof, pinch the main vine tip to promote fruit and control the vine. Generally, do not keep fruit at the 10th-20th nodes on the middle section, and remove lateral vines in time. When the plant is weak, lateral vines can be pinched after leaving 1 leaf. When the first crop of fruit is the size of an egg and the lateral vine fruits growing from the upper nodes are easy to set, pinch 2-3 more, keep 2-3 fruits for the second crop, remove fruitless lateral vines early, and leave 1 growing point at the top without pinching. Later, open the greenhouse film and keep 2-3 fruits on the secondary lateral vines to set the third crop of fruit.

3. Note that pruning and pinching should be done on a sunny day after the dew has evaporated, to help the wounds heal as quickly as possible and prevent infection. It is best to use scissors for pruning, and prepare a moist medicated cloth dipped in a solution such as 75% chlorothalonil 200x dilution, and wipe the scissors once after cutting each plant to prevent cross-infection.

How to eat horned melon

1. Stir-fried horned melon

Ingredients: one horned melon, eight basking shrimps, one chicken breast, one red chili pepper, scallion, ginger, garlic, light soy sauce, salt, starch, and an appropriate amount of pepper.

Method:

1. Slice the chicken breast, marinate with light soy sauce, pepper, and salt, and blanch the basking shrimps until cooked, then peel and set aside.

2. Peel and seed the horned melon, cut into suitable small pieces, add an appropriate amount of starch and peanut oil to the marinated chicken breast, and mix well.

3. Heat a wok over high heat, add peanut oil, stir-fry an appropriate amount of scallion, ginger, garlic, and red chili pepper until fragrant, then add the mixed chicken breast and stir-fry.

4. When the chicken breast begins to turn white and the slices are no longer soft and collapsed, add the peeled shrimp and horned melon pieces and stir-fry, add salt and continue stir-frying, and when the melon pieces break apart, turn off the heat and plate.

2. Shrimp and horned melon fried rice

Ingredients: shrimp, horned melon, corn, carrot, and an appropriate amount of salt.

Method:

1. Peel the shrimp and remove the digestive tract, dice the carrot, and peel the horned melon and dice it as well, set aside.

2. Pour shrimp oil into the pan, then directly add the corn kernels and diced carrot and stir-fry quickly. After stir-frying for two minutes, add the peeled shrimp.

3. When the shrimp are half-cooked, add the rice, quickly stir-fry the rice and side ingredients until evenly mixed, add the diced horned melon to the fried rice, and after all ingredients are stir-fried and mixed well, add a little salt and take it out of the pan.

Tips for selecting horned melon

1. Observe the shape. First look at the shape: one end at the stem is slightly thinner, and the other end is slightly thicker, but the whole melon should be relatively symmetrical. Do not choose one with a particularly large belly; a large belly means more seeds, and it is a bit old and not crisp. The stem should be relatively fresh; if the stem is yellow, it was picked a long time ago and is not fresh.

2. Observe the color. A ripe melon is grayish white, with a smooth surface and yellow lines, while an unripe melon is grayish green, darker in color, with a layer of fine fuzz on the surface.

3. Smell it. An unripe horned melon smells grassy and slightly bitter, while a ripe one smells fragrant.

4. Pressing method. Gently press the belly of the melon with your finger; it should not be too hard, and should give slightly when pressed, but definitely not feel mushy.

5. Look at the blossom end, which is the end of the melon belly. There is a small circle at the top; if the circle is large and bulging, it is relatively well ripened.

When is horned melon on the market

Horned melon is mostly grown in greenhouses and plastic tunnels, and can be marketed all year round. Prices are higher in spring, autumn, and winter, and relatively lower in summer. In addition, in other places there are melons with the same shape as horned melon, called horned honey melon; because horned melon is more fragrant and crisp in taste than the latter, its price is somewhat higher.

That is about all for the general information about horned melon. I wonder if everyone understands it now? Horned melon has extremely high nutritional value, and its taste is also very sweet and fragrant. However, to taste the pure flavor, you still need to master the selection methods.