How to Grow Watermelon: A Detailed Guide to Planting Methods and Key Techniques

First sun and disinfect the selected seeds, then soak and sprout them. Once the radicle grows to 0.5 cm, they are ready to sow. When sowing, place the sprouted seeds flat in a nutrient pot, 1 seed per pot, cover with fine soil 1 cm thick, and cover with plastic film. The sowing time is determined by the variety, region, and other factors.

After sowing watermelon, also pay attention to the following points:

1. Replanting

If the seedlings emerge unevenly and there are many gaps, replant in time. It is best to use sprouted seeds for replanting. If the gaps appear later and are few in number, you can dig out one seedling from a hole with two seedlings and transplant it into the empty hole. To make replanting convenient, it is best to sow some extra seeds in the empty space between rows, specifically for replanting. The younger the seedlings when replanting, the better.

2. Thinning

In directly sown watermelon fields, the sowing rate per hole is relatively large, which easily leads to crowding and mutual shading due to too many seedlings, so excess seedlings and diseased seedlings should be removed in time. Carry out the first thinning after the second true leaf unfolds, removing the weak and keeping the strong, leaving two healthy seedlings per hole. When the seedlings grow their fourth true leaf, carry out the second thinning, that is, final thinning, keeping one of the best-growing seedlings per hole. When thinning and final thinning, it is best to use scissors or your fingers to remove the culled seedlings; do not pull them out by the roots, so as not to damage the root system of the healthy seedlings you keep.

3. Transplanting

Early-maturing watermelon seedlings are about 1 month old and can be transplanted once they grow 2-3 true leaves. Mid-maturing watermelon seedlings can be transplanted at 20-25 days old, and late-maturing watermelon seedlings at 7-10 days old. Plant 2 rows on wide beds and 1 row on narrow beds. For small-fruit watermelons grown on trellises in greenhouses, plant 1500-1800 plants per 667 sq m; for ground-trailing cultivation, using three-vine or four-vine pruning, plant 600-750 plants per 667 sq m. Medium and large watermelons are generally planted at 650-700 plants per 667 sq m, and grafted seedless watermelons at 300-400 plants per 667 sq m.

4. Water and Fertilizer

Generally, do not water if the soil is not dry, and do not water too much at one time. Watering should be controlled during the seedling stage, and appropriately increased during the fruit expansion stage. When the young fruit grows to the size of an egg, apply fruit-swelling fertilizer according to the plant's growth.

Generally, strong seedlings are the foundation of high yield, so watermelon growers must manage the seedling stage well.