Thanks everybody! I think I managed to jinx myself again because I went to pick up a couple of the bigger jubilees the other day and something (bugs) had chewed their way in there and cleaned up. The bottom half of the melons were just a mushy black mess. I cut them open just to see and they weren't really ripe yet (not that we would have eaten them full of bugs but I wanted to know) so I had to toss those. Due to some ill-timed watering and freak rain, a couple of the smaller ones have split on the vine and had to be tossed as well. Some of the mid-sized ones show signs of being ripe (color fading a little, tendrils drying out) but don't really sound hollow when tapped and just aren't very big. I don't want to pick them too early but certainly don't want to let them sit there and rot. Right now I'm just watching them closely. There are still new little melons popping up every day and some of the vines are still flowering so I think we'll have plenty. I'm more interested in the new peppers I planted for the fall! I planted Cayenne seedlings earlier in the summer and they were "ok" for a while and then just all of a sudden exploded. I planted a fajita bell, red bell, and mammoth jalapeno a couple of weeks ago and they're fine but I'm ready for the explosion. Based on what I've seen this summer, I think they're probably going crazy UNDER the soil and getting ready for a good crop so I'm not worried, just impatient. I planted two Early Girl tomatoes at the same time in hopes of getting some fall tomatoes. I planted them both really deep (several inches of stem under the soil) so they'd get good roots. One of them is starting to grow now, the other still looks about the same as when I planted. Again, I know they take time to settle in but I've had all the delayed gratification I can take! @valentinetbear - I did start pumpkins this year, but I burned them with fertilizer or something and wound up scrapping the idea. When I was asking questions about them, someone on here posted pics of his pumpkin containers. The varieties I had were "giants" I think so I wonder if they would have survived the season. The vines were about 10' long (with lots of secondary roots sprouting along the vines) when I lost them. I was already having to water (at least) twice a day at that point so the way it's been lately, there's no way I'd have been able to keep them watered. When I dumped them, the roots filled up the containers they were in (1 in an 18-gal and 3 in a 31-gal) but they were not pot-bound at all. I *might* try a smaller variety in the biggest container I can spare next year just to see how it goes but I also promised the boys we'll plant jack-o-lanterns in the ground. I've started digging out a spot in the back yard already. Every time it rains or I get bored (doesn't happen often with two little boys to keep me busy!) I go dig for a bit. I figure by next summer, I should have a respectable hole where I can put some garden soil and compost and do some of the bigger stuff in the ground. We'll see...

I've tried growing melons for several years now and have not done it successfully yet. This is my last year trying (although I seem to say that every year I try.) I got a late start this year so might have to try again. I've had troubles in the past though: critters, short season & rotten weather are a few. I have a DH that is overzealous with his lawnmower. The latest garden victim was a blackberry skane loaded with green blackberries. That lawnmower is a lethal weapon to the garden. I wish I could put him on a leash sometimes So I don't think I have an good advice to offer, just some understanding of your frustration. Keep in mind the melon failure doesn't seem to be caused by you, but by circumstances you couldn't control.

Without looking I assumed it had been demonstrated that the pink dodder shown at the links had the same flower as in the original picture, but now I see it does not - and looks instead quite like the white dodder we have in my area, except for the coloring of the flowers. After the comments succeeding mine I assumed there was one of the tan tendril-like stems coming up from below, beyound the range of focus to make it appear the pink flowerhead in the original picture was coming out of the stem of the vine. Today, when it is earlier in the day and I am more focused I see once again that the vine in the original picture is not a melon and that the pink flowerhead is coming directly out of its own stem. If you look closely there is no mistaking that the flowers are those of the "melon" plant. And these flowers do not have the same structure as those of dodder.

I went to the extension office and he told me they were a type of oak caterpillar. He said 9 of 10 calls he has been getting are about these guys. He also said they are not supposed to feed on plants other than oaks and seemed surprised when I showed him my rose leaves as evidence. I do not actually have any oaks on my property but my neighbors on all sides have them. There are maybe 15 live oaks on my street. Yes, I get all the pollen and leaves from the oaks too. I can look over right now and see the devils hanging from my neighbor's tree. I have sprayed BT on some things but they curl up inside the leaves. I would need to rent a crop duster to spray for all these things. There are hundreds if not thousands of them. I will post a picture tonight.