Description
86 days from setting out transplants or 100 days for direct-sow. A trusted favorite for many years, Ambrosia lives up to its name with luscious salmon-red flesh and a juicy, tender, extra-sweet flavor that simply melts in the mouth! The melons produce very small seed cavities, saving the extra space for more delectable flesh! And they arise very abundantly on vigorous vines with great tolerance of Powdery Mildew. A reliable favorite that will turn you away from store-bought cantaloupes forever! Set out 18 inches apart with 4 feet between each row, or plant in hills 4 feet apart, with 2 to 3 plants per hill. Cantaloupes are ready to harvest when the stem slips easily from the fruit with slight pressure..Keep well watered while plants are growing; keep on the dry side as fruit is ripening to improve sweetness and flavor. Excess moisture during the 3 weeks prior to harvest gives melons a bland, watery taste. Mulch with black plastic to conserve moisture, eliminate weeds, and speed harvesting. Fertilize prior to planting and again every 4 weeks. Some varieties are early maturing, making it possible to grow them where the growing season is short. This vine sprawls 8-10 feet along the ground and bears Muskmelon (what is incorrectly called Cantaloupe—a fruit that is not grown in the United States) and Honeydew Melon. Muskmelon (Reticulatus Group) is round or oval, the skin is ribbed and net-patterned, and the flesh is orange or musky. Honeydew (Inodorus Group) is round, smooth-skinned, and with a light green flesh. Harvest Muskmelon when the stem slips easily from the fruit with a slight pressure; harvest Honeydew when the skin turns pale yellow or tan (the stem may not slip easily)
