You may have heard of these amazing little fruits, but have you ever looked into how to grow cucamelon? If not, you’re in for a treat here! Cucamleon are easy to grow, pretty delicious to eat, and you can do a lot of different things with them – what’s not to love!
How To Grow Cucamelon
Although some people are a bit nervous about planting exotic plants, and cucamelons typically come from warm countries, they are actually quite forgiving.
You can easily grow them at home, either in a greenhouse, in the ground or in pots, and they will reward you with a big crop!
- Start your cucamelon seeds indoors in small pots filled with good quality potting mix, about 4 weeks before the last frost.
- These plants will grow pretty large and like to climb, so only plant one seed per pot to minimise repotting stress.
- It will take between 1 and 2 weeks, and sometimes longer, for these seeds to germinate, so be patient!
- Keep them warm whilst they are sprouting; a propagator or a greenhouse is ideal, or in a warm spot in your house.
- Pot them on into bigger pots as they grow, allowing the plant to spread out and grow even larger.
- When there is no longer any danger of frost, you can plant your cucamelons outdoors – they will be equally happy in the ground or in pots.
- They will need a sunny, sheltered spot with at least 16 inches between each plant to allow them to grow and spread.
- Place some stakes or a trellis around each plant, as they are climbers and will need some support to cling to.
- Water the plants regularly, and feed with liquid tomato feed every week or so, to give them a boost of nutrients.
- When the plants reach 8ft tall, pinch off the growing tip to prevent them getting any taller (you can do this when they are smaller if you are short on space).
- From July, your plants will start to fruit and will continue until late September. Pick them when they are firm and the size of small grapes – leaving them longer will affect the flavour.
Can I Grow Cucamelons In The UK?
Although these plants hail from warmer climates than the UK, you can happily grow them in this country without too much trouble.
As long as you make sure that they have all their favourite conditions, and that you look after them well in the winter, you can grow cucamelons for a good few years.
Cucamelons originate from Central America, and as such they are used to warmth and humidity.
This does not mean you can’t grow them in different hemispheres in the world! Just make sure you keep them warm enough, and they should thrive.
If you keep them warm, either in a sunny spot in your garden or in a greenhouse, you should be able to grow a good cucamelon crop, whether in the ground or in containers.
How Long Do Cucamelons Take To Grow?
Although it takes a little while for the seeds to start to sprout, they actually don’t make you wait too long before you can start to harvest the fruit.
Generally speaking, it will be between 65 and 75 days from when the first shoots appear to when you can start picking your cukes.
Obviously, some plants will take longer than others, and some years the conditions will be better so the process might be quicker.
Conversely, if there are poor weather conditions or your plant is not in its favourite conditions, the harvest may come later.
Do Cucamelons Grow Back Every Year?
Cucamelon plants are considered to be a perennial, meaning that they can keep growing from their root stock for a few years to come.
However, those growing in colder climates may grow like an annual, if the cold weather in the winter kills them off.
You can keep them going for another season or two, if you take good care of the tuber in the cold winter months.
You will have to dig up the root as the weather starts to turn colder, then store it over the winter in a cool, dark place.
Once the weather starts to warm up again, plant it back out and wait for the second fruiting.
If you leave your cucamelon plant outdoors over the winter, the cold temperatures will kill off the plant and it won’t come back the following year.
How Do You Grow Cucamleons In Pots?
Growing these little beauties in pots is perfectly possible – and in fact it may be easier to dig up and store the tubers over winter so you get another crop.
Cucamelons are quite happy in pots; they don’t like to be too crowded so make sure you only have one plant per pots, and that the pot is a good size.
Once you have sown your seeds, allowing 2-3 seeds per pot in case one or two don’t sprout, you should transplant them into pots that they can grow into.
As the plants mature, they should be placed into larger pots that will be their final home – this should be at least 5 gallons in size, with drainage holes.
The cucamelons will need to be watered regularly as they won’t be able to spread out their roots to find water in the surrounding area.
You will need to add stakes or trellises – these little plants love to climb and spread, and the harvest will be better if they are allowed freedom.
If you are growing in pots, you can even keep your cucamelons indoors – just ensure that they have a sunny position and something to climb.
Here’s a useful video showing you the best way to grow cucamelons in pots:
Final Thoughts
As you can see, growing these little exotic looking plants is far easier than you might imagine. Once you’ve started, you won’t look back!
Hopefully you now have some great ideas on how to grow, harvest and enjoy your cucamelon plants, and their produce.
