The principal insect and mite pests on watermelons in Florida are aphids, rindworms (caterpillars feeding on the rind, including beet and fall armyworms, cabbage looper, tobacco budworm, corn earworm, saltmarsh caterpillar, and others), whiteflies, and thrips.
How do you keep bugs away from watermelon?
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.
What is eating holes in my watermelon?
Raccoons and birds make holes in the tops of melons and scoop or suck juices from the fruit’s inside. If you are unsure of the animal culprit, sprinkle a light dusting of limestone powder around your melon plants and try to identify the animal based on the footprints left behind.
How do you get rid of melon bugs?
Spray melon vines with a strong jet of water from your hose. This action is often enough to kill the majority of melon aphids, as well as small pests such as thrips and mites, that feed on the melon stems and foliage.
What is the best insecticide for watermelon?
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.
What is a watermelon worm?
Melon worms are elongate greenish larvae with darker head that cause severe feeding damage to vines and fruit of most melons. Closely related to the pickle worm that attack cucumbers. In areas that never receive frost (southern Texas and Florida), melon worms may be a year round problem.
Can watermelon have parasites?
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.
Can bugs get inside watermelon?
They’re easy to grow and no matter what variety you pick, you know you’re in for a real treat– that is until you find watermelon plant bugs. Unfortunately, bugs on watermelon plants aren’t an uncommon problem, but many of them are very easy to dispatch with a little dedication and know how.
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 control thrips from watermelon?
Apply insecticides like:
- Imidacloprid at 6 mL per 20L water knapsack.
- Imidacloprid at 6 mL per 20L water knapsack, mixed with Lambda cyhalothrin.
- For a better result, mix the insecticide with crop oil and spray the flowers and the leaves where the thrips live.
What is the best time for spraying watermelon?
Start spraying when vines start to run, no later than when the first (male) flowers open. From vine run until mid-May, spray every ten days. After mid-May, spray every week through harvest regardless of the weather. Downy or powdery mildew can attack any time a crop goes more than a week without a fungicide.
How do you increase watermelon fruit size?
To maximize the size of the melon, water the plants regularly in deep water sessions that keep the soil moist. Side dress the Watermelon plants with fertilizer prepared for edible crops or fertilizer tea to feed the plants. Fertilizer encourages growth to produce large melons.
What is killing my watermelon plants?
The most common reasons for watermelon plants dying include incorrect soil, watering issues, not enough sunlight, or planting issues. Temperature, weeds, diseases, and pests can also play a role.
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 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.
Are watermelon rinds good for your garden?
Watermelon rinds are a valuable source of green matter for the compost bin or heap, contributing nitrogen, nutrients, other trace minerals such as phosphorous, and moisture, beneficial to the composting process. The rinds, however, need to be chopped into smaller bits for them to compost completely and more quickly.
Are there worms in my watermelon?
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 I get rid of melon aphids?
Commercial horticultural oil can also be used. White oil, soap and horticultural oil sprays work by blocking the breathing holes of insects causing suffocation and death. Spray the undersides of leaves; the oils must contact the insects. A second application of soap or oils may be necessary after 3-4 weeks.
How do you control melon aphids?
Melon aphid is very difficult to control with insecticides. If natural enemies are not destroyed by insecticides applied for other pests, they will help keep melon aphid under control until late in the season.
What does a cotton aphid look like?
Description. Cotton or melon aphids, Aphis gossypii, are highly variable in size and color, varying from light yellow to dark green or almost black. Although size can vary based on environmental conditions, adult aphids tend to be about 1/16th inch in length, are soft bodied and pear shaped.
What are some potential problems with watermelon?
- Bacterial Rind Necrosis.
- Belly Rot.
- Blossom End Rot.
- Bottle Neck.
- Cross Stitch.
- Pimples.
- Splitting.
- Sunburn.
Marilyn Medina is a food expert with over 15 years of experience in the culinary industry. She has worked in some of the most prestigious kitchens in the world, including The Ritz-Carlton and The French Laundry.
What makes Marilyn stand out from other chefs is her unique approach to cooking. She believes that food should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their budget or dietary restrictions. Her recipes are simple, delicious, and healthy – perfect for anyone who wants to cook like a pro!