How To Grow Watermelon From Seeds

The timing for planting watermelon seeds depends upon several conditions. You need to consider your region's climate and the environment you are providing for growing watermelons. Here is a more detailed description of when to plant watermelon seeds.

Consider Soil Temperature

The warmth of the soil is mandatory for the watermelon to grow vigorously, bearing the most delightful produce rich in flavor, quality, and taste. The temperature of the soil is one of the pivotal elements you need to consider while growing watermelon from seeds and you need to maintain soil temperature between 21-35 °C for the entire growing period.

Be mindful that you need to protect your watermelon from severe winter. If there’s a risk of frost lingering around your region, it has been suggested that you postpone the watermelon seed plantation and wait for the right environmental conditions.

Remember to provide a well-conditioned environment for the watermelon seeds to germinate effectively and productively!

Seeds Sowing Conditions

Watermelon seeds need to be sowed indoors at the beginning. Make sure to sow the seeds before the expected coming frost period, 4-6 weeks earlier is considered good. You must provide the required indoor environment until the outdoor temperature or the soil is warm.

As mentioned earlier, warmth is what watermelon thrives for. It would be best, therefore, to check for the soil temperature before you bring them outdoors. In general, 2-3 weeks after the frost-end marks the suitable period to get the seedlings outdoors.

Consider USDA Hardiness Zones

Zone 3-5: For these hardiness zones, late April to early May is generally perfect to begin watermelon seed sowing indoors while outdoor transplantation is considered ideal during the period of late May to early June.

Zone 6-7: Unlike zones 3-5, zones 6-7 are quite different in terms of watermelon plantation. You can directly sow seeds outdoors from mid to late May as the outdoor conditions are more favorable during the period.

Zone 8-10: These zones are found to have a longer warmer period, beginning generally from March or April. Considering this, you can directly sow watermelon seeds outdoors starting as early as April or mid-March.

Besides timing based on various factors, location is another crucial element while growing watermelon from seeds. You should know that watermelon yearns for full bright sunlight and good draining soil rich in essential nutrients. If failed to provide a thriving environment, you won’t be able to get the anticipated result.

Sunlight Requirements

It would not be wrong to point out that watermelons are heliophiles that seek sunlight as much as possible during the entire growing period. Therefore, to fulfill the longing desire for sunlight and warmth, you need to choose the spot that receives maximum sunlight during the entire day while sowing the watermelon seeds.

Be mindful that shaded areas with cool environments are not favored by the watermelons, instead, such conditions are found to hinder the development process, bearing low-quality fruits.

Spacing

Before growing watermelons, you must be aware of the fruit type, size, and vine elongation. This way you can prepare your garden and allocate enough space for them to grow vigorously. You should know that spreading vines of the watermelon grow to different lengths and sizes depending upon their cultivars.

In general, the area of 20 square feet for each plant is considered enough allocation of space for any of the watermelon species to grow. There are various species of watermelons and some of them are also made to grow vertically on trellises. Choose your watermelon type depending on the space of your garden and your choice of species!

Soil Requirements

Watermelon won’t survive if it is forced to grow in poor draining soil. The soil that doesn’t have good drainage increases the risk of waterlogging, encouraging root rot and several related diseases. If you are to grow watermelon from seed, you mandatorily need to seek soil with a good drainage facility.

Further, soil with intended warmth should be maintained throughout the growing period of watermelons. You need to look for soil that can remain warm for the longest period.

To remain on the safe side, look out for sandy loam, this type of soil having a decent drainage and high moisture retaining capability, is considered best for growing watermelon. If possible, try to avoid low-ground areas, having a high risk of water collection.

There are a few basic procedures you need to understand and adopt while growing watermelon from seeds. The instructions are simple and easily accessible, so there's no need to panic. Further, this approach of growing watermelons from the seeds is considered one of the easiest and most fruitful ways to produce sweet fruit on your own.

Required Tools and Materials

• Shovel or hoe
• Hand trowel
• Gloves
• Watermelon seeds
• Fertilizer

The first and primary step to growing watermelon from seeds is the preparation of the soil. Make sure to sow the watermelon seeds in soil that has a decent drainage facility, enriched with essential nutrients. If the soil lacks essential nutrients, you may also need to use a balanced fertilizer.

Similarly, it has been suggested to add organic matter such as compost or manure to improve the soil nutrient constituents. Working more on soil, to allow the roots of the watermelon to grow freely, you also need to till the soil to some depth.

Mound the Soil

Soil mounding is the process of creating a pile of soil at the chosen location by accumulating enough soil up to the intended height. To grow watermelon seeds, it has been suggested to create a pile of about 8-10 inches tall with 10-12 inches width across the surface. You may make use of a shovel or any suitable tool for this purpose.

After preparing the soil for seed sowing, you can begin to plant watermelon seeds. Make sure to create small holes in three numbers around the sides of the soil mound. While poking holes, the size of about ¾-1 inch is considered good.

Remember soil mounding is for outdoor sowing, for the indoor plantation you will be learning in detail in the next block. After making the required number of holes in the intended size, you can then place a seed in each hole and cover them loosely with soil, followed by gentle patting.

Sowing Seeds Indoors

For the region experiencing longer seasons of cold with less warmer months, you need to start your watermelon growing phase from the indoors. Begin by choosing a suitable container and if possible, go for biodegradable pots. This way you minimize the transplantation shock and stress on your watermelon seedlings later on.

Be mindful that you need to fill the container with a seed-starting mix at the beginning and sow the seeds at about 1-inch depth. Make sure to keep the pots in a warm location that has good access to bright and direct sunlight for as long as possible each day. Do not forget to lightly water the soil consistently!

Water is a mandatory element of any plant and for watermelon seeds, it is no less than a must-have one. You need to consistently moist the soil where you have planted the watermelon seeds. While watering, be careful not to destroy the soil mound and gently water at the bottom of the mound.

You need to make sure the soil doesn’t get dry during the early growing phase or before germination. Rainwater may not be enough even during the rainy season, so make sure to regularly keep an eye on the growing spot.

As a reminder, you have sowed three seeds on each of the holes of a mound. This is done to remain on the safe side hoping that if one fails other would grow. After about 10-15 days, if everything goes as planned, you will see seedlings with some pair of leaves on them.

If every hole manages to bear seedlings, you need to thin out them. But before thinning out, make sure to allow all of them to grow a few inches tall with a couple of leaves. Once they reach the intended height and size, you can thin out the seedlings to one seedling per mound.

You should know that watermelons are heavy feeders. They need nutrients and water constantly and you must be able to fulfill their requirement for the full growing period. However, you need to be careful not to overdo anything. Watermelon requires a specific fertilizer at their different growing phase.

During the early period when you want to boost the vine growth, you may use nitrogen-based fertilizer while during the flowering and fruiting stage, you will be requiring phosphorus and potassium-rich fertilizer. Make sure to choose and feed the right fertilizer!

Once the vines start to develop, your watermelon is mid-way to the fruit development. You need to do a few things during the vine development so that your watermelon grows healthy and qualitatively. The vines of the watermelon need proper space to spread naturally and they shouldn’t be kept overcrowded.

But it is quite easy for the vines of the watermelon to put and spread as you like them to be. If you have congested space, you can use trellises to allow the spread vertically upward. You just need to prepare for firm and sturdy trellises.

For quality fruit and healthy growth of the plant, you need to constantly give care and support to the growing watermelon plant. This way you not only ensure vigorous growth but also cope with the potential issues that might arise during the growing period.

Pollination

You should know that pollination is vital for fruit production and in the case of watermelon without the transfer of pollen grains, fruit production can't initiate. For this, you have to ensure a pollinating environment around the surroundings where you are growing your watermelons.

You can plant specific flowers so that bees and butterflies get attracted to them. If possible, you can manually transfer pollen grains as well. Such a phenomenon is termed hand pollination. 

Prevent Pest Infestation

In the same way, you also need to look out for the pests and bacteria infestation in your plant. Be mindful that you should provide decent air circulation around the plant and extra care should be given while watering.

Further, regular inspection for any signs of pests and diseases and effective action against them is also necessary. It has also been suggested to provide a light barrier such as weed, wood, or plastic in between ripening fruit and the soil.

If you ensure good care and support during the growing period of watermelon, you will certainly get to taste the sweet and delightful watermelon at the end. But you should know how to pick a perfect watermelon and be aware of the signs of ripe watermelon so that you can enjoy them at the right time.

Adding more to that, you should know, watermelon stops ripening once they are separated from the parent plant. Therefore, it is a crucial phase of growing watermelons, after all, it is for what you have been investing your efforts in. You should know that harvesting watermelons requires specific knowledge about ripeness.

Once harvested, you may need to store the watermelons because all of them might not get consumed right away. Further, storing the right way will allow you to enjoy the flavors of watermelon even during the off-season.

There are different approaches to storing whole and cut watermelons, you can either refrigerate them or freeze them. Make sure to follow how to store watermelons to learn more about storing techniques.

a. Poor Germination

When using watermelon seeds to grow watermelon, there's a chance of poor germination at the beginning of the plantation. You may have mistakenly chosen the soil with the cold temperature to sow the seeds, overwatered the soil, or have sowed the damaged seeds.

Therefore, it is very important to inspect the soil temperature before you sow the watermelon seeds. You need to water the soil consistently but over watering is a devastating practice. Be mindful that you just need to maintain the soil moisture by lightly watering the soil. Similarly, you need to sow only the right and healthy seeds, or else your plant won't make it through to the end productively.

b. Poor Fruit Development

Another common issue you might encounter while growing watermelons from the seeds is the unexpected fruit output. If the plant produces low-quality fruit, you may have done something wrong while growing them. Majorly, such a case arises when you use excess nitrogen-based fertilizer, adopt imbalance watering practices, or sparse pollination.

To prevent such issue from occurring you need to be careful while fertilizing your plant. You need to give more emphasis on using potassium and phosphorus-based fertilizer, instead of nitrogen-based if you are to boost fruit production. Further, balanced watering practices should be maintained throughout the growing period.

c. Stunted Growth

If your plant seems weak and growing rather slowly, there may be some serious problems during the upbringing of your plant. The stunted growth of your watermelon may have resulted from various factors. You may have been falling short of providing the required nutrients, sunlight, and enough space for the plant.

You may need to add compost or manure with a balanced fertilizer to the soil. Further, watermelon mustn't be deprived of the sunlight. Similarly, you need to give proper spacing to each of the watermelon plants such that they won't interfere with each other, ensuring proper air circulation and growth.