Key Cultivation and Management Techniques for Bringing Watermelons to Market Early

In recent years, there have been more and more off-season fruits and melons, and the reason is that people have gradually come to understand that if a product can enter the market early, it can quickly capture the market and thus obtain greater economic benefits. The same is true for watermelons. With the continuous development of planting techniques, in some regions people can already eat watermelons on the market around April. So how is the technique for bringing watermelons to market early achieved? Let us learn about it together below.

I. Seed selection work required for bringing watermelons to market early

Watermelon seed selection requires attention to two points: one is the adaptability of watermelons to the climate of the planting region; the other is the market sales situation of the watermelons being planted. Regarding climate adaptability, growers can choose suitable melon seedlings according to local climatic conditions. Regarding market adaptability, there are currently two main melon types on the market, one is seeded watermelon, and the other is seedless watermelon. Planting experience tells us that seeded watermelons can achieve early maturity and early market entry through a series of cultivation techniques, while seedless watermelons have a relatively longer maturation period. Growers can choose to plant both seeded watermelon and seedless watermelon, with the best ratio being four to six. Using these two physical techniques for pest control can effectively eliminate most pests that seriously harm the growth of melon seedlings, such as noctuid pests and aphid and fly pests. Seeded watermelons can be used by growers and merchants to enter the market early and capture the market, while seedless watermelons can make up for it later and consolidate the market. The combination of the two complements each other, which is beneficial for growers and merchants to obtain considerable economic returns and can also meet consumer demand. At present, among seeded watermelons, the Black Beauty series performs relatively well in field planting, while among seedless watermelons there are varieties such as Nongyou New No. 1, and growers can choose reasonably.

II. Reasonable and timely sowing

To bring watermelons to market early, choosing the right sowing time is crucial, and adopting scientific and reasonable sowing methods is indispensable. Timely sowing requires consideration of local climatic conditions, temperature, and other factors. Taking the author's location as an example: the average temperature in winter and spring is 14°C, and after March, the temperature gradually rises. Growers can sow and raise seedlings in greenhouses during December and January of the following year. At the end of January and the beginning of February of the following year, growers can transplant the cultivated watermelon seedlings into field greenhouses. The matters needing attention in sowing and seedling raising are as follows: first, the seeds must be disinfected before sowing to do a good job in disease prevention; second, after the seeds sprout, it is necessary to ensure sufficient water at the roots and abundant nutrients; third, manual enhancement of light intensity is needed.

III. Field management: heat-preservation cultivation

To bring watermelons to market early, sowing and seedling raising must be done early, that is, sowing and seedling raising need to begin around December in winter. Using these two physical techniques for pest control can effectively eliminate most pests that seriously harm the growth of melon seedlings, such as noctuid pests and aphid and fly pests. The climate in December in winter is still relatively cold, and only by ensuring suitable temperatures can the sowing and seedling raising of watermelons proceed normally. The initial stage of sowing and seedling raising has stricter temperature requirements, so this stage is carried out in greenhouses. Only after the watermelon seedlings have grown for about one month are they transplanted into field greenhouses. In short, to bring watermelons to market early, temperature is key during the watermelon planting process, so the cultivation method in greenhouses is the main means.

IV. Field management: thinning seedlings and rational close planting

After the watermelon seedlings in field greenhouses grow to a certain stage, the seedlings will become entangled with each other. This is because the density of seedlings is too high in local areas when transplanting, so field thinning is very necessary. Excessive seedling density seriously affects the normal growth of seedlings and is not conducive to bringing watermelons to market early. However, if the seedlings are transplanted at too low a density, too sparse, it will directly affect watermelon yield. Therefore, growers must, according to the actual situation of their own melon fields, rationally plan the number of melon seedlings per unit area in their fields, plant at a reasonable density, and carry out field thinning work in a timely manner.

V. Field management: irrigation techniques

Watermelons consume a lot of water during the cultivation process, so it is necessary to ensure sufficient water and actively irrigate to ensure that watermelons can be brought to market early. Irrigation in watermelon field cultivation and management should adhere to the principle of “high frequency, low volume”; this irrigation method is more beneficial to the growth of watermelons. The irrigation technique that conforms to this principle is the currently widely used drip irrigation under film technique. This irrigation technique can not only ensure sufficient water in the watermelon field through all-weather spraying, but also save water.

VI. Field management: pest control

In the process of watermelon cultivation, to bring watermelons to market early, it is necessary to ensure the normal growth of watermelons and protect them from pests. Using pesticides is one method, but with the development of science and technology, in growing watermelons today we can reduce the use of pesticides as much as possible, since the use of pesticides has too many explicit and hidden negative effects. Growers can use physical techniques such as frequency-vibration insect-killing lamps and yellow sticky traps for pest control. In field greenhouses, install one frequency-vibration insect-killing lamp per 3 to 4 sq m on average, and hang 3 to 4 yellow sticky traps, each 20 cm by 40 cm and coated with machine oil, per 100 sq m. Using these two physical techniques for pest control can effectively eliminate most pests that seriously harm the growth of melon seedlings, such as noctuid pests and aphid and fly pests. Moreover, the economic investment in frequency-vibration insect-killing lamps and yellow sticky traps is one-time and can be used for a long time, which can effectively reduce growers' planting costs. In addition, the use of physical techniques does not have the series of negative effects of pesticide use, not only achieving good insect-killing results but also ensuring the excellent quality of watermelons and improving their safety quality.

The above is the cultivation technique for bringing watermelons to market early collected and organized by Qinnong Web for everyone, and fruit growers may refer to it as appropriate. This technique can both ensure the quality of watermelons and simultaneously achieve bringing watermelons to market early. Bringing watermelons to market early not only allows consumers to taste delicious watermelons earlier, but also considerably increases the economic returns of fruit growers, achieving two goals at once.