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Square Foot Gardening

Melons and Watermelons on a trellis

19 years ago

I am planning on growing some watermelons, melons, and cucumbers. They are all heirloom varieties and I want to grow them on fences. The fence is 5' high and is over 200' long so I have plenty of room.

What spacing would you recommend for watermelons, melons, and cucumbers on a 5' tall fence? I assume watermelons need the most space and melons would need less and cucumbers the least amount of space. I understand that different varieties grow different sizes.

I also know that I would have to support any heavy melons but small ones and cucumbers are fine.

I will have about 60'+ for the melons. I want to get as many in that space as possible. I will have many Navajo melon, a few Chantarais, and also a few Casabas.

The watermelons will have 60'+. I am growing Sugar Baby, Early Moonbeam, and a few Moon and Stars.

I would like to grow the melon and watermelons at one plant per hill and put the hills closer than if they had several plants. I wanted to use my space very efficiently. If I have one plant per hill that would reduce root competition and also space the vines further. I want vines to eventually overlap a little when they are larger.

I have read many sources that tell how to plant regularly in hills but I cannot find a source that gives some detail or general description of induvidual spacing for trellis growth. I would like to spend this season getting a bigger harvest rather than experimenting with spacing.

Please let me know what you think about spacing. Since I am in zone 5 in Central Iowa these crops should die in the end of September maybe a little later so they won't grow to be as big as ones in warmer zones.

Thanks

Amar

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Comments (3)

Jacque_E_TX
19 years ago
Howdy, Amar!

Did you look at the FAQ: "What are the recommended plant spacings"? These include the trellised vines, and show you planting patterns as well as spacings. That will give you a good start, or maybe inspire more specific questions after you read through the FAQ.

By the way, "hill" is really a term for a planting group of vining crops. The ground can be flat, or you can plant each seed in a shallow "saucer" shape in the soil. That holds the water in place, so you aren't watering weeds around the edges of your squares.
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garden_fever_girl
19 years ago
If trellising I would try them about 12-18 inches apart if you only have one plant per planting ..and I second what Jacque said -- no need for mounds or hills (that's for those sillies who still plant the old fashioned row way.)The reason I say that about the spacing is that if I remember correctly the vines even at the base get big, and are fairly heavy feeders (they need more good stuff in the soil to grow effectively.) This will be my first year trellising mellons and that is what I'm planning to do for them.
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Square foot gardening advocates growing melons up trellises to save space. Mel's book specifically mentions muskmelons, but I don't know why watermelons wouldn't work as well. I grew Bush Sugar Baby watermelons last year... not truly a bush, but a shorter vine. I didn't personally do them on a trellis, but they would probably work fine for that. The vines and fruit both stay small enough. I say give it a shot!
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I can't speak on behalf of watermelon, but I have grown cucumbers on the ground and the same variety on a trellis. Days to harvest were the same. I can say that some of my crops are not ready to pick according to what the seed package "estimates". My beets always take longer than what the package says. Same thing on my carrots. Partly it depend on the number of heat units accumulated in your area, amount of sunshine, water ect. The estimated ready date on the seed package is just that, an estimate. My brother grows cantaloupes and watermelons and if lucky honeydew melons. He always laughs at what the estimated ready dates say as his melons take a lot longer before they are ready to pick.
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garden_fever_girl
19 years ago
oops forgot -- Mel says cucumbers can be two to a square foot.
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