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Cantaloupe/Muskmelons

Plant 24-36 inches apart as the will vine. To determine ripeness it is important to know that each variety is a little different and must be learned! Most melon varieties are ready when the gray-green color begins to change to buff-yellow and when a light tug separates the fruit from the vine. Some melon types, like honeydew, charentais, canary Spanish, and crenshaw are overripe by the time the stem can be tugged from the fruit. These must be cut from the vine.

Cantaloupes, named for the papal gardens of Cantalupo, Italy where some historians say the first cantaloupe was grown, are smooth skinned or lightly netted with few ridges. Some are warted. Blushing skin color and a whiff of perfume are usually telltale signs of ripening.

Muskmelons are usually heavily netted and deeply ribbed with larger seed cavities than cantaloupes. Farmer opines that they are easier and require less heat to grow well than cantaloupes.