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Pa

Do watermelons put down tap roots along the vine the same way pumpkins do?

1/23/2011 10:14:00 AM

formerly RGG

Watermelon vines will root along the way but to a somewhat lesser extent than pumpkins.

1/23/2011 12:40:35 PM

Muddy Waters

yes same way but smaller

1/23/2011 1:09:46 PM

sevierville, Tn

They also take longer to put out roots & don't cover the vines with dirt.

1/23/2011 10:05:38 PM

Pa

Why not bury the vines like is done with pumpkins? Is the plant fed from the vines or does it all come from the stump area?

1/23/2011 11:07:19 PM

Bowdon, GA

They can shoot substantial roots down, it does take a while and they only grow out the bottom of the vine, unlike pumpkins. I agree don't bury they. The vines will rot if you bury them, but you don't need to since they grow out the bottom.

1/23/2011 11:14:22 PM

Bowdon, GA

titanic look at my diary from last year the first two pics might give you an idea of how they look.

1/23/2011 11:20:50 PM

Rochester, Minnesota

I use pins to hold down my vines, and that encourages greater rooting. I am worried about burying the vines since they are so susceptible to rotting. I have seen my vines tap out up to 6 or 7 junctions. When I grab the vine at the end of the season, there is a popping noise as each one let's go.

Anyone willing to try burying vines to see what happens?

1/24/2011 1:34:21 PM

sevierville, Tn

Bill Brinkley buried his a few year ago. Had the best looking plant ever...then mid summer it died. The vines rotted.

1/24/2011 3:02:29 PM

Nekoosa, Wisconsin

Bill Edwards buries his vines and he has done quite well.

1/24/2011 6:12:43 PM

Rochester, Minnesota

So...50% of the Bills that buried vines had problems. I wonder how James' would fair?

1/24/2011 6:30:56 PM

Western NY

I buried mine at only a few points last year, and it didn't seem to cause any problems. I will likely do the same with a couple plants next year, and bury one or two others like I would a pumpkin plant.

I know there are or were people afraid of burying pumpkin vines. I think if your soil is disease free, there shouldn't be any problems but I'm willing to find out.

1/24/2011 6:51:30 PM

Sevierville,tn

I don't bury,,,,to many things to do don't have time..(I have to make hubby supper)

1/24/2011 8:28:53 PM

Frankfort Oh

Well everybody has there nack, but I have a mentor ,and thats Bill Edwards -hes say not to bury them ,but to place dirt at about every other two feet or so ,until the plant grabs hold of the ground ,I use coat hangers ,the end of them.has worked well for me,the side vines need all the plant it can get ,the more leaf cover the more shade it provides for the side vines -in return more root growth-and also will hold moisture,just alittlebit longer -hope that helps

1/24/2011 9:04:21 PM

Muddy Waters

I lightly bury,which after a rain or two,vine is exposed again,and leaves have rooted,but have never used drip tape before that may change how I do it this year.Marvin Mitchel burys vines but he is on sandy soil great drainage.

1/24/2011 10:03:49 PM

Kentucky

In 2008 I decided to prune and bury all the vines on my melon plants. I set the plant in the middle of a 10' X 20' area and pruned and trained 5 vines on each side of the plant to fill in all the area. I buried every vine. All the melons started off great, better than I had ever had. After a week of hot and extremely wet weather in late July all the buried vines started rotting. I had uncovered the vine that had the melon growing on it on a few plants and the uncovered vines stayed healthy. My 216 was grown from about 100 pounds on with only 1 healthy vine. I believe with the heat and humidity in the South the buried vines will rot most years.

Bill Brinkley

1/24/2011 10:37:56 PM

Bowdon, GA

Not worth the risk for me. They will still root well with out burying. They will even root through most landscaping cloth.

1/25/2011 9:50:28 PM

Mass

Should a plant be planted in the middle of area? do they run in all directions?, or are they planted and trained like a pumpkin?

1/26/2011 7:58:33 AM

formerly RGG

Planting in the middle and growing in a circular shape works best for me.They vine out in all directions.And they can get very large under good growing conditions.Sometimes the vines get so thick it is a bit difficult to access the stump.

1/26/2011 9:24:49 AM