I have grown Charentais melons in southern RI for the past three years. The crops are iffy at best. However, that said, if you plant your seeds really early directly into the ground your chances are fairly good that you will get a few great melons. Early means mid to late April. My first melons that came along were the largest and by far the best, and sweetest melon you will ever eat out side of Cavaillon, France. The rest that grew were a bit larger than a softball and tasteless. Never took off. We just don't have enough 'beating' sun to grow them. Calif. has a far better chance. They are the best though. I didn't plant them this year as they take up a lot of room and the leaves get powdery mildew by mid August. You then know its really over. My best, Mrs. G

I planted two varieties - Savor and Alvaro, which is a week earlier. Alvaro was larger but I wasn't impressed with the flavor, the fruits seemed underripe although they were colored. Savor was exquisite as usual.

The fruits are not large, although definitely supposed to be larger than a softball. I've had a dozen on one vine in the past, but the cucumber beetles don't allow that now. I'm lucky to get the first set ripe before the vines die.

Any other melon is just insipid next to Charentais.

Same problem here, curc beetles limit the harvest. I grew them for three years but decided it was not worth the work given the limited harvest.

Death to all curc beetles!

Scott

Charentais melons have a propensity to crack and sunscakd for me. Even if I am very careful not to over-water, some will probably crack badly in hot weather. I have better luck growing them on a fence and making sure the fruits are shaded. I try to time them to ripen before or after the hottest weather. My Father-in-law had great luck with the Honey Girl hybrid, timed to ripen in fall.

I grew two little melons which both (I think) have some Charentais parentage, but may be easier to grow in some conditions. One is Tasty Bites, reportedly a hybrid between a Charentais and an Ananas melon. It is netted, which helps prevent sunscald and cracking. The fruits slip when ripe, which makes them easier to harvest than Charentais. Color of the skin under the netting of the ripe fruit is darker than that of the typical muskmelon, like the Ananas parent. Texture is tender and melting A sweet, nicely flavored melon but not a Charentais. There is also a Tasty Bites melon mix with honeydew-type melons in different colors, so be sure you are getting the seeds you want.

The other little melon is Extra Summer Sweet. It is more productive than the traditional Charentais types. It can be variable in appearance when ripe, sometimes having a yellow caste to the skin or showing a little netting. Pick when blossom end softens slightly. It can also be somewhat variable in texture depending on growing conditions, with a tendency to be firm to the point of crispness. It is always very sweet. It can crack in hot weather here, but it has much less tendency to crack than a Charentais.

Here is a link that might be useful: Extra Summer Sweet melon

Savor almost always cracks here in TX. Everyone I grew this year cracked but they were still good and most were edible.

Yes grew them.....you will have to ask the coons if they were good.