watermelon female flower not opening

Why are my watermelon flowers dying?

Flowers falling off watermelon plants during the first stages of blooms are usually male flowers, not the female blossoms that produce the melons. ... If your female watermelon blossoms are dropping, it is likely due to poor pollination.

How do you get a female watermelon flower?

The flowers can be pollinated by hand in the absence of bees. First, you must distinguish between the male and female flowers, which are both yellow. Female flowers are attached to the plant by what appears as an immature watermelon, while males are attached by only a thin greenish stem.

Why does my watermelon plant only have male flowers?

A watermelon plant is a cucurbit and as such bloom with both male and female flowers and can be pollinated without the help of another watermelon plant. ... These first flowers are male flowers whose only purpose is to provide pollen to fertilize the female flowers. They fall off the plants a day or two after they open.

What's wrong with my watermelon plant?

Black, wrinkled spots on leaves and dark or sunken areas on stems and fruits are the first signs of disease. Under humid or wet conditions, affected plants rapidly collapse. ... Powdery Mildew – One of the most common diseases of plants in general, powdery mildew doesn't spare watermelons.

Can you over water watermelon?

Too much water can be detrimental when growing watermelons, reducing the quality of the fruit or causing it to burst. This can be especially problematic if you're having unusually heavy rains during the growing season because you have no control over how much rain falls.

How do you increase watermelon fruit size?

To maximize the size of the melons, water the plants at the base in regular, deep-watering sessions that keep the soil moist. Side dress the watermelon plants with fertilizer designed for edible crops or compost tea to feed the plants. The fertilizer encourages growth to get larger melons.

How long do watermelon flowers last?

Watermelon flowers only last for one day so there must be an adequate number of bees and other pollinators in the area when the flowers are viable. If your garden is in an area with very few bees, hand pollination may be necessary.

How can you tell if a watermelon is male or female?

Look for a firm, symmetrical watermelon without bruises, cuts or dents. Lift up the watermelon, and it should feel heavier than its size. And, turn it over -- the underside should have a spot that appears creamy and yellow from where it sat on the soil and ripened in the sunshine.

How long does Watermelon take to flower?

Depending on the cultivar and growing conditions, most watermelon will flower from four to eight weeks after germination.

How can I make my watermelon grow faster?

Prune off all other fruit once you have a single watermelon set. This will enable the plant to put all of its energy and nutrients into the one healthy plant, making it grow larger and faster. You will probably plant more than one seed, so you will have one large fruit from every plant.

Is watermelon self pollinating?

Although seedless watermelons are self-sterile and therefore cannot pollinate themselves, seeded types can pollinate themselves. This means that the pollen from the male blossoms can fertilize the female blossoms on the same vine, producing fruit later in the season.

How do you hand pollinate watermelon flowers?

Hand pollination for melons with the male flower starts with carefully removing a male flower from the plant. Strip away the petals so that the stamen is left. Carefully insert the stamen into an open female flower and gently tap the stamen on the stigma (the sticky knob). Try to evenly coat the stigma with pollen.

What is killing my watermelon plants?

Downy mildew affects many types of plants. Watermelon affected with down mildew exhibit symptoms such as leaves that curl inward, turn brown and die along with irregular-shaped fruit. Fusarium wilt is another fungus that attacks the root first and travels up the plant stems.

How often should Watermelon be watered?

While melon plants are growing, blooming, and setting fruit, they need 1 to 2 inches of water per week. Keep soil moist, but not waterlogged. Water at the vine's base in the morning, and try to avoid wetting the leaves and avoid overhead watering. Reduce watering once fruit are growing.

Why does my watermelon have a black spot?

A lack of calcium ultimately causes rapidly developing cells in fruits to collapse on themselves, turning the blossom end of the watermelon into a black, leathery lesion. ... More often than not, watermelon blossom end rot occurs when water levels are fluctuating during fruit initiation.

Do you water watermelon everyday?

Watering Watermelons

Give watermelons 1 to 2 inches (2.5. -5cm) of water every week (1 inch equals 16 gallons/60.5 liters.) Keep the soil moist until the fruit reaches full size then stop watering while the fruit ripens.

What's the best fertilizer for watermelons?

When fertilizing watermelon plants, use nitrogen based fertilizer at the onset. Once the plant begins flowering, however, switch to feeding the watermelon a phosphorus and potassium based fertilizer. Watermelons require ample potassium and phosphorus for optimal melon production.

Do watermelons like wet soil?

Moisture Requirements for Watermelon

Although the watermelon's deep root system makes it relatively drought-tolerant, the plant requires an abundance of water to produce healthy fruit. Keep the soil consistently moist from planting until the fruit reaches the size of a tennis ball.

Why is my watermelon not getting bigger?

When melons don't get enough water they stop growing. Don't over-water them or the vines will collapse, but continue to keep them well watered like you have been doing and remember that the larger they get, the more water they will need. Allow the top 1 to 2 inches of soil to dry out between waterings.

Why are watermelons so small now?

Temperature – Watermelons like it hot, between 60-70 degrees F. ... If temperatures are low in your area, this may very possibly be the reason for small watermelons. Pests and disease – If you have small, misshapen fruit, the culprit might be an aphid infestation. The aphids act as vectors introducing the mosaic virus.

How long does it take for a watermelon to grow to full size?

The time it takes for a watermelon to mature can be anywhere from 65 to 90 days after planting. Once the fruit sets to tiny marble-sized melons, it only takes up to 45 days for those tiny melons to develop into watermelons 10 pounds in size or more.