Minnesota Midget

Season Overview

Description

The Minnesota Midget is a sugar-sweet mini melon that fits in the palm of your hand (approx. 10 cm, 300-500 g). This particularly early variety ripens in just 60 days and is ideal for beginners. The tendrils are very short, so this melon grows almost bushy with an enormous amount of small fruits with a sweet taste. The melon has a deep orange flesh that is juicy, sweet and delicious except for the rind! Ideal for growing in our latitudes as it ripens quickly. The soil should be well-drained and, above all, nutritious.

Growing tips

Germination in 1-2 weeks at 20 - 25 °C. This variety can also be grown in a large pot or box in a greenhouse. The ripe fruits fall off the plant by themselves. If you allow the plants to climb, it is therefore a good idea to place straw or cloth under the plants so that the fruits land softly. Once they have ripened, they can no longer be stored for long. It is best to eat them immediately. Your sugar melons should be grown in a warm environment (windowsill, greenhouse, conservatory). Once the first leaves have formed, you can separate the seedlings. It is then best to continue growing them in a warm environment until the soil is warm enough outdoors (end of May - beginning of June). The small melon plants can be carefully planted out in planting holes filled with compost (heavy feeders!). It is essential to protect the young plants from strong sunlight at the beginning. Water your melons regularly without allowing them to become waterlogged. It is best not to use cold water from the tap (especially in colder temperatures), but always use stagnant water from the rain barrel. When watering, make sure that you never water the melon plants from above onto the leaves, otherwise there is a risk of mold. During the main growing season, you can prune the tips regularly to ensure that plenty of branches with lots of flowers develop. Over the course of the year, many large leaves will also form on these branches, most of which you should cut off so that the melon plants can put their energy into fruit development. After pruning in summer, only a handful of leaves should remain on each branch above the fruit. Thin side shoots can be cut off completely except for a few centimetres at the base.

Details

Light requirement

Sunny

Water requirement

Very humid

Soil

Medium (loamy)

Nutrient requirement

High

Seeding distance

80 cm

Row spacing

80 cm

Seeding depth

2 cm