What planting methods can increase the yield of oriental melon

There are quite a lot of oriental melons on the market now, and we simply cannot tell oriental melon and muskmelon apart. In fact, they are the same variety, and their taste is very similar too. It is just that muskmelon is a bit larger and sweeter than oriental melon, and their cultivation methods are also very similar. Nowadays more and more people are growing oriental melon, but many say the yield is not high, so today Qinnong Web will teach you a few tricks to increase the yield of your oriental melon.

1. Variety selection

There are a great many varieties to consider, and we often come across some very strange names, such as Thai oriental melon, Taiwan oriental melon, Heixiuli, Cuiyu melon, Biyu melon and so on. In fact they are all oriental melons, only differing in their resistance. Some, for example Heixiuli and Cuiyu melon, have extremely strong disease resistance, while Thai oriental melon and Taiwan oriental melon have stronger drought resistance. So we can choose varieties with different resistance according to the local climate, and this is the foundation for increasing oriental melon yield.

2. Timely sowing

Different varieties and different regions have different planting times, so we should sow in good time according to the local climate. The temperature suitable for oriental melon growth is basically around 15 to 25 degrees, so in most parts of our country oriental melon can be planted in both spring and autumn, and this is also a way to increase yield. In spring, sowing is generally carried out from the end of February to mid-March, while in autumn it is from the end of August to early October. Varieties with a relatively long growth cycle, such as Thai oriental melon, need to be sown as early as possible, while those with a short growth cycle, such as Cuiyu melon, can be sown later.

3. Pruning and pinching off the growing tip

During the growth of muskmelon, pruning is very necessary, because if it is not pruned, the vines will grow wildly in all directions and will not flower or set fruit, only continuously growing vines. So when the vine grows to 40 cm, we need to move the vine in the same direction, which can promote the fruit-setting stage, and at the same time remove the tip of the main vine, so that after two or three years four or five side branches will grow out beside it, and this can also greatly increase the yield of oriental melon. If the side branches do not set fruit, we can continue pinching off the growing tip. If the side branches set fruit, we need to remove part of the surrounding branches and leaves to reduce nutrient consumption.

4. Vine grafting

We rarely hear that oriental melon can also be grafted on vines, but it is indeed a very feasible method. Nowadays many melon growers use this technique to increase the fruit-setting rate, for example for pumpkin, watermelon, winter melon and so on. When the oriental melon seedlings grow to about 60 cm, cut off the tips of two adjacent oriental melon seedlings at an angle. The two cuts must fit together, then fix them well with grafting clips. After three or four days new side vines will grow, and when the side vines have grown to a certain extent, grafting can be continued, which can reduce disease, enhance resistance, and naturally the yield will increase too.

5. Hand pollination

Oriental melon is generally pollinated by insects, but this kind of pollination is not necessarily uniform, nor can it necessarily cover all of them, and some insects even carry diseases themselves, which has a great impact on the fruit-setting rate of oriental melon. So when necessary, hand pollination can be carried out to increase the fruit-setting rate. The usual method of hand pollination is to collect the pollen one day after the flowers open, then go to the field to pollinate during the time period from 8 to 10 in the morning the next day. Pollination can be done by spraying or by smearing, which depends on whether you value efficiency or effectiveness.