![]() We used 4 trellises – two at each end – and grew the third watermelon plant on the soil in the middle. ![]() We planted 2 butternut squash plants and 3 watermelon plants in one of those beds. These beds have the deepest soil I’ve ever used in my raised bed gardens, and I was frankly stunned at how large our harvests were last year.ĭeep soil can have a huge difference on how well your plants grow. These beds are made from concrete (cinder) blocks, and are 18 inches high, a little over 3 feet wide, and almost 16 feet long – for a total of 50 square feet each. We built new garden beds last year, to make it easier for me to garden with my disability. But I still usually grow a spring crop before the watermelons, and a fall crop after them. ![]() I give my watermelon plants the whole bed to themselves. Any time you restrict their root growth, the plant will become stunted and not produce as much.Īlso, once their vines start taking off (maybe 3-4 feet long), I no longer grow other plants in the same bed with them. I want my plants to grow as large and vigorously as possible, to produce a big crop. This is one reason that I don’t put weed barrier under my raised garden beds. I’ve found the roots growing several feet outside the small garden bed they were planted in. These roots will go down as deep as they can, and sidewise for a long distance. Just because they will be growing vertically up a trellis doesn’t mean that their roots will remain in a small area at the base of the trellis. 2) Give them the best soil, as deep as possible, in your raised bed. This is a watermelon plant growing in a 50 square foot raised bed with two young espalier apple trees. So, sometimes you can succeed, even if you “break” the rules! Just don’t count on a good harvest with less than full sunlight of 8 hours or more. It only received about 6 hours of sunlight, but I still harvested 3 large watermelons from that bed. However, a couple of years ago, I took a chance and planted a watermelon in a 50-square-foot bed (about 3′ x 16′) with two young 2-year-old espalier apple trees. But if you select the right variety, take good care of them, and train them up a trellis, you can enjoy fresh melons from your own small garden beds.ġ) Make sure these plants get full sunlight – 8 hours or more. Yikes! There’s no avoiding that they are large, vigorous plants. If you’ve been avoiding growing watermelons because your garden is too small, wait no longer! You can grow a watermelon plant in a small 4′ x 4′ raised garden bed – if you use a trellis.Ī single watermelon plant, given good growing conditions, can almost fill a 15-foot-wide circle on the ground.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |