When is the best time to pinch off the tips of small melon vines?

Small melon vines are generally pinched off when the main vine has grown 4 to 5 true leaves, but an appropriate number of side vines should be retained; after the secondary vines grow out, flowers and melons are kept, and after the fruit sets, no pruning or training is needed.

How to grow small melons

1. Prepare the land and apply base fertilizer

The plot prepared for planting melons must be plowed in advance; those planting in fields in the south should have perimeter ditches and bed ditches properly dug, and water must not accumulate.

Melon fertilization is mainly based on base fertilizer. Generally, per mu (667 sq m), use 10 to 15 kg of urea, 40 to 50 kg of superphosphate (or 20 kg of calcium magnesium phosphate fertilizer), 15 to 20 kg of potassium sulfate (note: chlorine-containing fertilizers such as potassium chloride are taboo), 1 to 2 kg of manganese sulfate, 3 to 5 kg of boron-magnesium fertilizer, 1 kg of borax, and 1 kg of zinc sulfate. If there are organic fertilizers such as poultry and livestock manure or compost, apply 2500 to 5000 kg per mu.

10 days before transplanting, spread the farmyard manure evenly over the field, and deeply plow 25 to 30 cm while preparing the land; after the above chemical fertilizers are mixed evenly, apply them in concentrated furrows. Note that melon seedlings must not be planted directly on top of the fertilizer; keep a distance of 15 to 20 cm, otherwise the fertilizer will burn the roots. In addition, farmyard manure must be fully decomposed before application.

2. Sowing and raising seedlings

2.1 Prepare nutrient soil

Use 5 parts of mature garden soil that has not been used to grow cucurbit crops and 5 parts of fully decomposed farmyard manure. Note: the nutrient soil and farmyard manure must be sieved, and some plant ash or sawdust should be added. For each cubic meter of nutrient soil, add 1 kg of superphosphate, 0.5 kg of potassium sulfate, 200 g of 50% carbendazim, 200 g of 75% metalaxyl-mancozeb, and 5 g of 95% hymexazol. After mixing evenly, make nutrient pots. Note: keep a small amount of the mixed nutrient soil as covering soil for the seeds.

2.2 Seed treatment

2 days before soaking the seeds, sun-dry the seeds for half a day, then make a gauze mesh bag or gauze bag about 5 times the volume of the seeds, put the seeds into the bag, and tie the opening tightly, so that the opening does not need to be loosened during the subsequent operations, which is very convenient; then, place them in a 1% potassium permanganate solution or a 500-fold thiophanate-methyl solution and soak the seeds for 15 to 20 minutes. After taking them out, wash them clean with clear water, then soak the seeds in warm water at 25 to 30°C for 5 to 6 hours. Note that the seed soaking time must not be too long, otherwise the germination rate will be affected.

2.3 Germination acceleration and sowing

Shake the soaked seeds vigorously to dry off the surface moisture, wrap the gauze mesh bag with a moist cotton cloth, then put it into a plastic bag, and place it in a place at 25 to 35°C to accelerate germination; sprouts will appear in about 12 to 20 hours. When the seeds have sprouted and turned white and the radicle is 1 to 2 mm long, they can be sown.