Do Watermelons Have Pests?

Insect Pests of Watermelon Aphids – Tiny and appearing in nearly any color you can imagine; aphids do an amazing amount of damage for their size. Colonies suck the juices from your watermelon’s leaves and excrete a sticky residue that may attract sooty mold.

Does watermelon have bugs in them?

The rinds of the watermelon fruit are very appealing to various types of worms. As a whole, these are referred to as rind worms. Some common rind worms include armyworms, tobacco budworms, earworms and salt-marsh caterpillars.

How do you protect watermelon from pests?

Fencing and netting won’t keep bugs away from your watermelon crop. Spray repellents are the most effective and common way of protecting ripe fruit from insects. A few sprays of a vegetable-safe repellent can keep away aphids, ladybugs, and various other watermelon-eating insects.

Can there be parasites in watermelon?

Unfortunately, the watermelon serves as a host to a number of parasites. A parasitic relationship involves one organism while the other organism (in this case the watermelon) is harmed. Both fungi and bacteria are very common organisms that create symbioses with plants.

What are some potential problems with watermelon?

• Bacterial Rind Necrosis.
• Belly Rot.
• Blossom End Rot.
• Bottle Neck.
• Cross Stitch.
• Pimples.
• Splitting.
• Sunburn.

What bugs are on my watermelon?

Watermelon Insects

• Thrips.
• Flea Beetles.
• Twospotted Spider Mites.
• Cabbage Loopers.
• Beet Armyworms.
• Grasshoppers.
• Leafminer Flies.
• Spotted & Striped Cucumber Beetles.

Why are there worms in watermelon?

Rindworm is a general term referring to a number of insect larvae that feed on the surface of watermelon fruit. The most common culprits are the larvae of the cucumber beetle or corn rootworm. These larvae live in the soil and feed on the underside of the developing melon.

What pest eats watermelon?

If you’ve ever tried to grow watermelons (Citrullus lanatus), you’ve probably noticed insects, such as aphids, leafminers and caterpillars, like to eat parts of the plant almost as much as you enjoy eating the fruit. Repelling these pests is the key to growing a crop of watermelons good enough to eat.

What can you not plant near watermelon?

The best plants to companion with watermelons are herbs, lettuces, marigolds, nasturtiums, and radishes. Avoid planting cucumbers, squash, and potatoes near watermelons to help reduce the risk of pests.

What do you spray on watermelons?

Insecticides Insecticides used in watermelon are: abamectin, esfenvalerate, diazinon, dimethoate, carbofuran, dicofol, methomyl, permethrin, carbaryl, endosulfan, imidacloprid, bifenthrin, beta-cyfluthrin, thiamethoxam, spiromesifin, fenpropathrin, dinotefuran, spintor, vydate, and fulfill.

Can watermelon carry bacteria?

Melons and food poisoning
While melons do not naturally contain bacteria that can make you sick, their outer skin or rind can become contaminated because melons are grown close to the ground. Eating melons that have been contaminated with harmful bacteria can make you sick.

Can you get a disease from watermelon?

Experts say there are two possible ways watermelons could have caused infection. One is that the surface of the melons could have been contaminated with Salmonella bacteria which may have transferred on to the flesh of the melon during the cutting process.

Can you get salmonella from a watermelon?

A salmonella outbreak has again been reported in the United States, this time linked to a summer treat: fresh cut melon. At least 60 people have been infected with a strain of salmonella that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) believe is related to a food processing facility in Indiana.

Why watermelon is not good at night?

Watermelon is slightly acidic and if consumed at night, it may delay the process of digestion when the body is inactive. The best time to eat watermelon is around 12-1 pm when the digestion rate is high and active.”

What happens if you eat watermelon everyday?

If you eat an abundance of the fruit daily, however, you may experience problems from having too much lycopene or potassium. The consumption of more than 30 mg of lycopene daily could potentially cause nausea, diarrhea, indigestion and bloating, according to the American Cancer Society (opens in new tab).

How do you keep a watermelon healthy?

While melon plants are growing, blooming, and setting fruit, they need 1 to 2 inches of water per week. Keep soil moist, but not waterlogged. Water at the vine’s base in the morning, and try to avoid wetting the leaves and avoid overhead watering. Reduce watering once fruit are growing.

What do melon aphids look like?

Melon aphids are small and range in color from a light/dark green mottle (fig. 2), which is most common to whitish, yellow (seen during hot, dry weather), pale green, and dark green almost black forms. The legs are pale with just the tips of some parts black. The cornicles also are black.

How do you get rid of melon worms?

In insecticide-free cucurbit production and in home gardens, melonworm can cause serious damage. In addition to conventional synthetic insecticides, the botanical material neem and the biological insecticide Bacillus thuringiensis are effective for melonworm control.

Can watermelons get maggots?

Watermelon transplants are also susceptible to maggots where they move from root balls into the stem.

What are the white streaks in watermelon?

White heart is a disorder that can develop during the final stages of watermelon growth. With this disorder, white streaks appear throughout the flesh of the melon.

What is eating my watermelons?

Animals such as squirrels, chipmunks, deer and woodchucks enjoy puncturing and eating melon crops. Coyotes and domesticated dogs also enjoy biting into sweet melons. Raccoons and birds make holes in the tops of melons and scoop or suck juices from the fruit’s inside.