The watermelon is one of the most popular plants in the world. Suppose you wonder how many watermelons per plant and want to know the best way to grow watermelon vines; the post is born for you. Please keep following us to understand more detailed information about watermelons and factors that will affect the number of watermelons per vines. Let’s get started!
How Many Watermelons Will We Get Per Plant?
Watermelon vines all have both female and male flowers. On average, the male flowers are more than the female ones. To be specific, the ratio of male to female is 7:1.
After pollination, plants will produce fruits. Typically, a healthy one will provide from one to eight watermelons. That being said, the commercial watermelon grown with a high plant density at a tight spacing will only produce 1-2 watermelons per plant.
In general, around 70 to 75 days is the most common length of time it takes for the watermelons to mature from seeding. Yet the thing to mention is that the fruits in the main watermelon seasons (from July to August) take longer to ripen – normally 80 to 90 days.
How Many Watermelons Do Farmers Get Per Acre?
In some developed countries globally, such as the United States and others in Europe, they usually can get the highest yields of almost all crops. Watermelons are no exception!
Watermelon farmers can access modern farming equipment and effective fertilizer processes, which somewhat decide how many watermelons per plant. In the US, the number of watermelons per acre is about 45,000 pounds on average.
According to an article released from 2007, the expected watermelon yields in Georgia would be about 40,000 – 50,000 pounds per acre. For these local farmers, it was considered an acceptable but not excellent yield.
Meanwhile, the expected yields for Texas and Oklahoma are between 10,000 – 70,000 pounds and 16,000 – 30,000 pounds per acre, respectively.
From 1997 to 2001, the average watermelon yields that farmers got were 52,400 pounds in Imperial County, California.
The scientists said that the watermelon farmers could get about 70,000-100,000 pounds per acre in reality with the ideal plant conditions.
What The Main Factors Will Affect Watermelon Quantity Per Plant?
Watermelon Variety
In a North Carolina State University report in 2017, watermelon variety is one of the main factors that decide how many watermelons per plant. They took the study on 39 watermelon varieties grown. The results showed that about one watermelon per plant on average.
As stated in the report, hybrid varieties of watermelon, like most garden plants, will usually have higher quality than heirloom watermelon varieties. Therefore, its yield and disease-resistant ability are higher.
Plant Spacing
Besides watermelon variety, plant spacing also greatly affects the answer of how many watermelons per plant.
To get the optimal results, farmers often take a tight space between watermelon plants, which results in one good watermelon per plant. However, those grown on the edge of fields will be heavier since they can absorb more water, nutrients, and sunlight, which are all needed for any plant.
When we plant watermelon vines in a tighter space (about 2 square feet), it yields more overall weight. However, the number of watermelons per plant will be fewer.
How To Increase Watermelon Yields?
Below are some things that will help you increase watermelon yields.
First of all, for those who want to grow commercial watermelons, the ideal spacing is 2 square feet per watermelon plant. If your garden doesn’t have enough space, you can train the watermelon vines in a zig-zag or circular pattern on a trellis and thin out the weak vines.
As mentioned in the first part, the watermelon variety that we choose is one of the main factors in deciding how many watermelons per plant.
Bottle Rocket, Charismatic, Lemon Ice, Neptune, PeeDee Sweet, and Sugar Fresh are some of the best-producing cultivars we strongly recommend for watermelon planters.
Besides, putting fertilizer and watering regularly is also necessary if you desire to increase watermelon yields.
To have healthy plants, we need to frequently water once a week. Especially after watermelons’ seeds have germinated, we should thoroughly give the plants an inch of water every week.
Fertilizers are also good for watermelons as they provide many needed nutrients. Therefore, let’s keep a balanced quantity of compost and add light mulch to maintain the soil’s moisture and stave off weeds from interfering with the plant’s growth.
Conclusion
After reading this post, we are sure that you know the correct answer to the question: How many watermelons per plant? and helpful information about the watermelon plant before starting to grow a dream watermelon garden.
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