Cucurbits · warm season
Watermelon
Citrullus lanatus
Icebox and short-season varieties (Sugar Baby, Blacktail Mountain) are the safe Ohio bet. Giant types need southern counties.
- When to plant in Ohio
- Start indoors late April or direct sow after June 1 in warm soil
- Harvest window
- August through mid-September
- Days to maturity
- 75–90 for icebox types
- Spacing
- 48–72 in.
- Light
- Full sun, heat
How to grow it
Black plastic mulch warms soil. Do not rush planting. A melon is ready when the tendril nearest the fruit browns and the ground spot turns creamy. Stop watering a week before harvest to concentrate sugar.
Related cucurbits
Slicing cucumber 50–65
Pickling cucumber 50–60
Zucchini 45–55
Yellow summer squash 45–55