|
Origin
Melons are believed to occur naturally in desert and savannah regions of Arabia, Africa, southwest Asia and Australia and to have been domesticated in Africa and southwest Asia at least since 2000 BC. Introduced to the Americas by Columbus and later Spanish explorers and, as with Watermelon, they were extremely popular with North American Indians and seeds were probably dispersed from tribe to tribe. Producing and exporting countries include Spain, Italy, France, Morocco, Egypt, Brazil, Venezuela, Costa Rica, Panama, South Africa, Mexico, and Israel.
Varieties
Yellow honeydew, white honeydew, cantaloupe, cantaline, galia, charantais, piel de sapo and watermelon (Citrullus lanatus)
Growing Conditions Required
The crop it suited to a variety of soil types but well drained soils are very important with a pH of 5.5-7.0. The best locations are areas that have a drought period to allow plant growth, flowering and fruit development without rainfall as rain encourages diseases on the plants and causes catastrophic diseases on the fruit. Planting to harvest is typically 70 - 90 days, depending upon the variety and the climate, with pollination being insect driven predominately by bees. The plants are trailing or climbing vines that produce male flowers followed by female flowers that open typically for just one day, some flowers contain both male and female structures. Melons are propagated from seeds, either by direct sowing into well prepared beds or by germination in a nursery and then transplanting the 10-12 day old seedlings into prepared ground.
Handling Requirements
The ideal temperature depends upon the variety of the fruit. Cantaloupe melons 3ºC-5ºC, Cantaline melons 6ºC-10ºC, Galia melons 5ºC-8ºC, Watermelons 10ºC-13ºC, Piel de Sapo melons 8ºC-13ºC, Charantais melons 5ºC-8ºC, Yellow honeydew melons prefer 10ºC- 13ºC. Colder temperatures encourage chilling damage.
Irish Season
Melons are not commercially grown in Ireland as we are in the temperate zone and this does not encourage growth.
Eating Experience
Galia melons are round with a netting on the skin they should be aromatic with a light green to near white flesh and a central seed cavity. Yellow honeydew melons depending upon cultivar have a light to deep yellow smooth skin. The melon is generally oval in shape with a light green to cream coloured flesh with an occasional orange hue around the seed cavity. White honeydew melons have a light cream to white smooth skin. This melon, more popular in the USA and Portugal, is generally oval in shape with a light green to cream coloured flesh and a central seed cavity. Cantaloupe melons have dense raised netting to the skin and some varieties may have distinct smooth ribs giving a segmented appearance. The flesh is deep orange to salmon and slightly aromatic with a central seed cavity. Cantaline melons are round with a smooth light green through yellow to pale orange skin colour with an orange flesh and a central seed cavity. They appear to be grown almost exclusively in Brazil. Charantais melons should be highly aromatic with a deep orange coloured flesh and are normally round with smooth skins or very light scattered netting and they have a central seed cavity. Piel de Sapo 'toad skin' melons are oval with green and black mottled skins and a cream to white coloured flesh occasionally with an orange hue around the seed cavity. Watermelons can have dark green skins or with light and dark green stripes depending upon the cultivar. Seeded varieties have distinct black seeds scattered around in the flesh. 'Seedless' varieties generally have what are termed as micro seeds scattered around in the flesh that are small white and considered edible. Most watermelon varieties seeded or 'seedless' have a light pink to deep crimson coloured flesh depending upon the variety while some more unusual novel varieties come with yellow flesh.
The Healthy Option
Melons stimulate the kidneys. Watermelons are a recommended in traditional medicine as a remedy for bladder problems.
Interesting Fact
Melons are members of the cucurbit family and are closely related to cucumbers, courgettes, pumpkins and marrows. Melons, like pineapples, have no built-in starch reserves that convert to sugar. Once the fruit has been harvested, it does not get any sweeter, so growers allow melons to ripen on the plant to a point where they are almost fully ripe.
|
