Watermelon Seeds - Picnic - Cal Sweet

Growing Cal Sweet Watermelon Garden Seeds

Sowing & Growing:

Sow Cal Sweet Watermelon seeds in pots 4-6 before your region's final frost. Plant non-GMO watermelon seeds 1" deep in quart containers and in potting soil that is well-drained. Germination will take 3-10 days. Place Cal Sweet seedlings in a sunny location and keep the soil moist. Once the young watermelon sprouts have developed their first set of true leaves, transplant them into their permanent home. Use fertile soil that is well-draining and has a pH of 6.0-7.0. Directly sow seeds once your region has remained warm and at least 70°. Place in a location where the watermelons will receive plenty of heat and plant in raised hills. Sow Cal Sweet Watermelon seeds 1" deep, 1-2" apart and with 5-6" spaced in between hills. Water regularly until you see fruit begin to produce on the vines, then ease up on watering to help the summer conditions ripen your watermelon crop. It's recommended to use row covers to protect the Cal Sweet Watermelon plants outdoors.

Harvesting:

You can harvest your non-GMO Cal Sweet Watermelon seeds around 90 days from the sowing date or once the underside of the fruit has turned a yellow color. Wait for the main vine and coils attached near the stem to dry out. Unlike other melon varieties such as cantaloupe, watermelons won't fall off the primary spreading vine by themselves. Harvest your ripe heirloom watermelon crop with gardening shears by cutting the fruit near the stem. The fresh fruit of watermelon offers a variety of flavors when paired with something savory or mixed in a salad. Some adventurous gardeners even pepper their watermelon with chili powder or salt!

Facts:

This Citrullus lanatus Cal Sweet variety is easy to carry as a picnic-sized melon. Watermelons are not only rich in lycopene, they produce high amounts of vitamin C!