How can you tell when a cantaloupe is ready to pick?
Question:I have several large cantaloupes in my garden but they look kind of light green. Not the pale color you see in the store.
Answers:
When where the stem meets the cantaloupe turns slightly golden colored they are ripe,,a good thump with the forefinger will also give a slight hollow sound, and you can also lift them gently, and when thye have a light white spot on the underneath they are ready..Watermellons and cantaloupes have this trait..this is why you see watermelons with the large yellowish tint spot on one side of them...I grow my cantaloupes on a fence to save space..grow them right against a fence and as they start "vining" go out daily and train the vines around the fence links..as the fruits develop on the fence to prevent from them dropping when they go heavy I make what i call a "bra" around each fruit..a torn piece of cloth about the size of a bandana make a cradle out of them by tying one side on the fence by the fruit, and the other side on the other side of the fruit..tie this from a caddy corner aspect..and it will make a nice pocket for the melons to rest in and not fall..check out my garden pictures on page 11 of my flickr phto album..the vines growing on the fence are cantaloupes.link below..
The vine will actually fall off it. Check daily when it happens they get overripe in the sun quick.
They are ready to pick when the stem shrivels
To pick a ready to eat cantaloupe, check the spot where the it was removed from the vine. In a ripe melon it will be slightly indented and scarred. The end opposite the stem should give slightly when pressed. The best sign of a ripeness is a distinctive sweet melon smell. Though the amount and deepness of netting on the skin color varies according to the variety of the cantaloupe, unripe melons will have a distinct green color below the netting. Avoid cantaloupes with shriveled, bruised or cracked areas.
Whole melons with greenish areas or unyielding firmness can be stored on the countertop to ripen. Fully ripe melons should be refrigerated. Wash the rind before slicing.
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