Melons

At the start of this month I posted about the melons that I'm growing in containers on my deck. At the time I was concerned that there wouldn't be enough time for any of these fruits to ripen, that the cold weather would arrive too soon.

Well, we've had a remarkably warm September, and the fruits are now ready! The harvest has been small, with each plant producing only one or two useful melons, but since that's the most I've ever gotten from a melon plant anyway, I'm happy with a small harvest!

***

And "small" is the key adjective here: these are not large fruits. 'Minnesota Midget' is a variety that has a short maturation period, allowing those in northern climates (or gardeners who plant too late like me) a chance to harvest some fruit.

It's like the story of Goldilocks, but told with melons instead of bears:

When I took these photos last week, these three were the only fruits that were ready. The one that was jammed between the bars had long ago ripened and been left to the ants and other insects (I couldn't get it out), and even these fruits had some damage:

This is not bad enough damage to ruin the fruits though, which were quite tasty:

Those of you with keen memories may be asking now, "what about the other melon variety?"

This is 'Tigger', an heirloom that looks great, more like a tomato or apple than a melon, very pretty on the kitchen counter.

I didn't know what to expect from this one, as the Baker Creek Seeds description said it was "very fragrant" but didn't mention the flavor.

I was disappointed by both, as there was little of either fragrance or flavor from this white flesh. Perhaps I harvested too soon? (It fell of the vine when I gave a gentle tug, but maybe I should have let it just fall off on its own?)

While I was away over this past weekend a few more fruits ripened, one of them falling off the deck... but landed on a potted plant instead of the hard ground so survived the fall. I've got another 'Tigger' fruit to try too, so I'll let you know how that one tastes.


It seems like growing melons on my deck is the way to go for me, my one edible food success this year! (if I don't count the kale that I overwintered)

.