What variety is the seedless?
1 Like
It is not a variety, this is a natural polyploid variant from the seed I started this year. See post 162 in this thread for a photo of the plant. Natural polyploids are rare. I’ve seen 2 in my life, one in 1994 and a second this year. You can usually tell something is different by leaf size, shape, and thickness. I pulled one ripe melon from this plant a couple of days ago with two more still on the vine.
Breeders make tetraploid watermelon plants using colchicine or similar chemicals that interrupt chromosome separation at the pachytene pairing stage of cell division. Basically, a diploid (2 sets of chromosomes) cell fully duplicates its chromosomes then fails to split into two cells resulting in a cell with 4 sets of chromosomes. Grow out the tetraploid and pollinate flowers with normal diploid pollen making triploid seed. A triploid is incapable of pairing chromsomes therefore is normally incapable of producing seed. But sometimes even then nature finds a way. Sometimes a triploid cell does something funky with chromosome pairing and produces a diploid or tetraploid or hexaploid cell resulting in a seed in a seedless watermelon.
2 Likes
I urge you to give some of these newer varieties a try. So far the triple crown seems like a super market seedless but a fully ripe orange crisp or harvest moon are very good. Tropical sunshine is a new one over at Johnnys I’m thinking of trying. It looks just like my old heirloom favorite Janosik, but seedless and supposedly extremely sweet. Orange crisp is sunburn resistant as well for your area.
2 Likes
MNmelons, I grow watermelons specifically to produce seed which I sell. I’ve grown seedless varieties many times over the years. I can eat them, but it is kind of hard to sell seed from them. 
I’m also a watermelon snob. I grow for very best flavor. A few varieties are outstandingly good.
2 Likes
I’m quite overwhelmed with the varieties to chose from quite honestly.
I’m still thinking Moon and Stars or Harvest Moon plus a yellow or orange like Orangeglo, Orange Crisp. Dulcinea Sunny, or Luscious Golden
If I pick two seedless I’ll have to add a third.
Eating quality first.
Preferably two or three different colors for variety and perhaps subtle flavor differences.
Not the largest vines but I can probably accommodate one.
Since I will be growing the vines on crushed limestone or gravel, I won’t get the ground spot so perhaps I can rest them on something smooth to mimic the ground… Unless somehow the soil plays a part in the spot. I was hoping it was simply from no direct sunlight but I see that it may not just be that which forms the ground spot.
Again, my growing season is about 7 months long
1 Like
I like Sweet Gem seedless. A 15 lb dark green round that is 79 days. The best flavored seedless that I have tasted. Some seedless have an aftertaste that I don’t like.
That being said, I just got some other seedless ones to try next year from a friend that grows melons for a roadside market. People come in asking for Sugar Baby since its a name they know. A bin of small seedless ones usually sends them off happy. Sort of like Silver Queen corn that nobody around here grows anymore.
1 Like
It is almost a “green syrupy slime” flavor for me. Most seedless watermelons have it to some extent.
1 Like
I’ve noticed a vegetal, green taste in watermelons from stores. I can taste it as an aftertaste and in the flesh after the heart. I don’t know if it’s a specific trait of seedless varieties, but I am curious of growing at least one seedless variety in the future—maybe.
1 Like
Picked a 7 lb 14 oz Blacktail Mountain watermelon. Dry tendril and yellow spot. Small spot as it was on gravel.
Chilling.
1 Like
The ones in the store are under ripe most times. I finally got a dead ripe Triple Crown on my third try. The first 2 tasted store bought. This ones great. Think they all will be from here on out. Always takes me a few to figure out a new variety. This one was over 20 pounds.
6 Likes
I see that you have also grown Leelanau Sweetglo. Between Orange Crisp and Sweetglo, which do you prefer for taste and for productivity? (By the way, I love your watermelon pictures!)
3 Likes
Here’s one of the new “Melonade” cantaloupes. 15 brix. It does taste like a cantaloupe that was soaked in Country Time Lemonade. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I’m kind of neutral on it. Being 15 brix helped a lot, and the plant was fairly healthy looking all summer. This one was better than a 10 brix regular cantaloupe, but probably not as good as a 15 brix regular cantaloupe would be. The flavor is not bad, but is kind of weird.
2 Likes
From what I can tell by growing Blacktail Mountain watermelon this summer is the vines continue to set fruit all summer long.
How do you balance the need for water to size the newer set melons versus watering down /splitting the ones that are close to ripe?
Is it more normal to remove any additional fruit from each vine after you have 2 or 3 sizing?
1 Like
I sent in a very large order at sandhill and will be getting the ice cream melons in it. I sent extra money and asked for any samples of the tastiest short season melons.
I didn’t see luscious golden there but am looking for it. I’m going to dedicate a good section of the front part of the lot to just melons and field pumpkin next year- big plans.
I picked this bigger melon just in time- it split as I cut into it. I think it’s a bog standard crimson, I lost almost all the tags in the patch. it’s incredibly fragrant when cut. very sweet, juicy in the center
6 Likes
I think it may just be under ripeness combined with them withholding watering before picking?
1 Like
I had a couple Sweetglo that were incredible. Then the following year I had some more 30 pound beauties and all were over ripe when tendril dried. So this year I tried orange crisp. It’s supposed to have a very long picking window and the last one we tried was under ripe so I’m leaving them go a long time now as we eat some other varieties. Have 10 more at least to sample so I’ll be giving more opinions on them over the next few weeks.
5 Likes
Awesome @MNmelons
Crisp is one I have my very amateur watermelon eye on. If you can observe a legit longer picking window it will do us amateurs some good to know these type good tasting varieties are out there.
Everything I’ve read (not from seed sellers) gives Crisp a good taste review.
With this seeded melon I can go with Harvest Moon for my second.
1 Like
Orange crisp is also seedless.
Orange crunch is the seeded version.
1 Like
Some bad Info and photos out there.
Then I’d have to go with Moon and Stars, which is seeded I think, to pollinate Crisp