Introduction to Melon Cultivation Techniques and Vine Training and Pinching Management Methods

Melon, also known as oriental melon, Hami melon, etc. It is widely cultivated throughout China, and also widely cultivated in temperate to tropical regions worldwide, being the earliest cucurbit used as a fruit in China. Below is an introduction to melon cultivation techniques and vine training and pinching management!

I. Melon Cultivation Techniques

1. Seed soaking: After selecting good varieties, you may sun the seeds appropriately in fine weather, then sort them. For warm water soaking, soak in 55°C water for 1 minute, then cool to 25°C, and after 6 hours remove and let them dry slightly, then sprout them (keep the sprouting temperature at around 28°C). When the seeds sprout and show white, sow them promptly.

2. Seedling raising: You may use 65-cell black seedling trays, raise seedlings (average temperature above 15°C) for about 35 days. At the 3-5 leaf stage, transplant the seedlings to the field.

3. Transplanting: Transplant in early to mid-May. Planting density can vary depending on the variety. After transplanting, pay attention to water management to shorten the recovery period as much as possible. Water into the planting holes, which both preserves soil temperature and provides sufficient water for recovery. Cover with plastic film to retain moisture and increase soil temperature. When transplanting, you may also use water-retaining agent to reduce the number of waterings, and water once more during the entire growing period.

4. Fertilization: Apply base fertilizer once in sufficient quantity. Open a furrow 30 cm from the plants, apply 50-100 kg of potassium sulfate compound fertilizer per mu, or 2-3 cubic meters of decomposed livestock and poultry manure. Or 50-100 kg of ternary biological organic fertilizer. In the mid-to-late stage, spray potassium dihydrogen phosphate, Fengshou No. 1, etc. on the leaves to supplement and regulate, which can also balance vegetative and reproductive growth and increase fruit set rate.

5. Pesticide application: Along with the pots and fertilizer, broadcast 2-4 kg of Tiannuo Xianjing per mu, or phorate or abamectin, etc., to control underground pests, nematode disease or soil-borne diseases; during planting management, strengthen the prevention of viral diseases, spraying plant disease spirit and protective fungicides on the leaves once every 10 days or so.

6. Watering: Water less normally, seize key periods such as the fruit-swelling water, and at the same time apply quick-acting compound fertilizer to ensure sufficient nutrients for the melon, and water timely in case of drought.

7. Management: Choose appropriate vine training methods based on variety characteristics. For example, Xiangmi 900 does not need vine training or shoot removal and can be left to grow naturally; while the Shabai series melons require five-vine training leaving 3-4 fruits.

8. Taboos: Most melons should not be continuously cropped, should not be watered when the soil is hot, should not use chlorine-containing fertilizers, should not weed during the flowering period, should not apply nitrogen fertilizer, should not be planted after rapeseed, and should not be planted under large trees. Melon growers are advised to note and refer to these for planting to ensure a good harvest.

II. Melon Vine Training and Pinching Management

1. Vine training and pinching should be arranged after 10 AM, when stems and leaves are softer, avoiding unnecessary damage during operation. At the same time, when the temperature is higher after 10 AM, spray healing and anti-corrosion film after pinching, which can quickly form an anti-corrosion film, seal the wound, and heal quickly. It prevents freezing, virus invasion, spread of rot disease, overwintering pest habitation and reproduction, rain pollution, and cracking of large wounds. Applying it to the sunny side of the plant can prevent sunscald.

2. Vine training should follow the principle of tight early and loose later. Pinching the main vine must be timely; when pinching, only remove a tiny bit of the growing point to avoid affecting the number of secondary vines produced. During the rapid elongation period of secondary vines, vine training must be timely, which is an important step to promote tertiary vine growth and early fruit set.

3. In southern planting, melons are generally grown in deep furrows and narrow beds with higher density and smaller individual plant nutrient volume, with 4-5 vine training, and fruit set is relatively uniform. Too many fruits set leads to insufficient nutrients, resulting in small fruits with poor marketability. Therefore, it is best to keep 4-5 young fruits per plant with good fruit-setting nodes and regular fruit shape, and thin out the rest. During the young fruit stage and swelling stage, spray Zhuanggua Diling to thicken the fruit stalk, increase flow, promote fruit development and swelling, enhance the melon's water and fertilizer absorption capacity, and improve fruit yield and quality.

Finally, a reminder to the vast number of melon growers: to increase the sweetness of melons, besides variety, using less nitrogen fertilizer, and increasing the use of phosphorus and potassium fertilizers and organic fertilizers, more importantly, it is temperature control and moisture control.