Melon problems

It's the beginning of November and the garden at my new property is flying along. Plants grow like crazy in this sub-tropical climate. But it isn't just plants (and humans) who enjoy the warm days and mild nights. Fruit flies are proving to be a big problem. I planted some watermelons around the end of September, and there are around four good-sized ones that have escaped fruit-fly intact - they still have some growing to do but they appear to be at a stage where fruit flies can't get into their skin. Learning point: plant your watermelons as early as possible in late winter when fruit fly numbers are low (or plant in autumn and nurse them over winter - that will be next year's experiment). All the small developing watermelons, however, are being destroyed. They first get a little black track on them, and after a few days to a week the small fruit goes entirely black and needs to be disposed of. I have been applying Econatulature regularly to my garden (painting it onto wooden surfaces like the stakes, tree prunings, and wine barrels). There was a period of about a month where I neglected to do this, however, which might explain my current fruit fly problem. I've started applying it again to see how effective it will be in preventing any further issues with my water-melons.

Strangely, the rock-melons I'm growing appear not to be affected. They aren't as numerous as the watermelons (about three small ones), but they are in full view. Either they are lucky or the fruit flies simply prefer watermelon.


Another problem I have had with my watermelon is the tips and flowers turning a blackish grey and dying off. I consulted with a horticulturist at the recent garden show and their opinion was a fungal infection caused by growing the plant in insufficient sun. I was growing it in a half wine barrel, which apparently doesn't help as they really need to be in the ground. So, don't grow your watermelons in pots no matter how big and make sure they get full sun.

Finally, powdery mildew. The watermelons seem to be relatively immune to his, but the rock melons are badly affected. I've removed the worst affected leaves and tried spraying with a diluted milk mix and although all the gardening resources suggest this milk spray, I am not yet convinced that it has any affect. Apparently it makes the surface of the leaves more alkaline, which powdery mildew doesn't like, but milk is actually slightly acidic, which makes me doubly dubious. I may resort to a potassium bicarbonate spray if I can get my hands on some, as that is supposed to be the next weapon to deploy.