How to Grow Watermelons From Seed
Love the thought of juicy watermelons in the summertime, but hate the price? Why not grow your own? These are easy enough for even the 'greenest' gardener to grow, and they are great for children. Start them indoors, and finish them up in your garden. They'll be a fun treat for the whole family! Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- watermelon seeds
- potting soil
- small container (yogurt pots work well)
- water
- a warm environment
Instructions
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Start by gathering your containers. Used, cleaned yogurt cups are great starter pots, as are the small individual servings of ice cream cups. Or you can get small pots from a garden center, but for economical gardeners recycling those snack cups is the best way! You will need as many as the number of plants you want to grow.
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Fill each container with potting soil. You can purchase this very cheaply at many discount stores or any garden center. Fill the containers half to three quarters full. Using your finger or a spoon poke a hole about an inch deep and drop 2 or 3 watermelon seeds in each hole. One hole per container!
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Cover your seeds with soil and water the soil til it's moist. Be careful not to over water these small containers as this could cause the seeds to rot and never grow. If you over water them, try sitting them in the sun for a few days and letting the soil dry out. When it's completely dry add a little water and wait, hopefully your seed will have survived!
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Once the seeds are planted and watered place them in a warm environment to speed up the sprouts. A great place for this is on top of your refrigerator! Leave them here until they sprout, which can take several weeks, and then you can move them to a sunny spot in your house.
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Once sprouted, continue to water as needed until they've grown a bit. You may have several sprouts in each container. After they start to really grow you'll want to thin them back to just one or two sprouts. Do this by snipping the excess plants off near the soil. The remaining plants will grow stronger and bigger!
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Finally, once your plants are big enough to survive outside (and the weather is warm enough) plant them in a sunny spot and water them regularly. You'll be enjoying those juicy watermelons all summer long!
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Tips & Warnings
Getting your kids involved in growing their own food is a great way to encourage them to eat a varied, healthy diet!
Resources
- Photo Credit Windows Live Search Photo
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Comments
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I eat whole watermelons myself all summer long! Trying again this summer to grow them. Never worked, but this summer will be different.
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who doesn't love a watermelon.
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easy peasy!
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FrazzledNanny
Mar 06, 2009
I like watermelon. I've always wanted to grow it but I don't have room to grow it. Great article. 5*
