Melon Growing Advice

That is about the same size as my largest which also appears to have stopped swelling.
The easiest way is smell they have a distinctive perfumed smell when ripe, also like tomatoes and apples when they are ripe they come away from the plant easily.

 

I agree, the smell gives them away when they are ripe, also the netting on the surface, if you are growing that type.
Its surprising how long they take to fully ripen.

This year they will probably be ripe around Christmas.

 

I'm hoping for Michelmas.

 

September.
Dont pick too soon, I dont know how many you have got, but they will be worth waiting for.
They will be disappointing if unripe.

 

I think August is typical for me.
Pete is right if you pick too soon it will put you off them for life, as they will be dry and woody.
If ripe the juice runs out of them on cutting and they smell really good.

 

I think the biggest problem if you pick too early that you will kick your self for ruining a good fruit just by being impatient.

 

Hmm, I am quite a bit behind JWK with my melons. I have only allowed 3 melons per plant to grow on in the hope this will encourage those to get to picking stage. One or 2 seem to have ground to a halt at the size of about a medium sized apple? Others are now around the size of a big grapefruit but still quite a way to go and our weather has turned quite a bit colder. I live in hope!

 

Are they charentais melons, JWK? The reliable way to tell when they're ripe is that a narrow crack appears right around the stalk, and they'll have a faint yellow tinge. And the distinctive smell

 

Nice looking melons John, looks like a good result.
Imagine what you could do in a good summer.

 

Looking good JWK. My plants have stopped flowering and the melons are slowly increasing but not to your size yet. They grew quite quickly but have now slowed down. The weather is still pretty good for us but bit cold at night which might be slowing the process. I have put buying palma ham on hold for the time being!