How to Make Canopy Sweeter

Shandong farmers: How can we improve the sweetness of shed melons?

Answer: 1. Re-apply organic fertilizer and less fertilizer. It is an effective measure to improve the sweetness of muskmelon with organic fertilizer as the main ingredient and not applying or using less fertilizer. General organic fertilizers mainly include biogas residue, straw rot, chicken manure and bean cake. The chicken manure can be cooked 15 cubic meters per 667 square meters, bean cake 100 to 150 kilograms.

2. Increase the temperature difference between day and night. The larger temperature difference between day and night is conducive to the accumulation of photosynthetic products (sugars), and the temperature difference between day and night should be widened as much as possible during the fruiting period of melons. In general, the daytime temperature in the shed is kept at 30~35°C, the nighttime temperature is kept at 13~14°C, and the temperature difference between day and night is kept at 16~18°C.

3. Reasonably increase potash fertilizer. In the case of low potassium levels in the soil, the sweetness of melons will be significantly reduced. Therefore, the amount of nitrogen fertilizer and potassium fertilizer should be reduced in the melon melon period. In the early stage of the melon, it can be applied with 8~10kg of potash fertilizer or 20kg of potassium compound fertilizer every 667m2.

4. The appropriate control of water. The excessive soil moisture in ripening melon will not only reduce the sweetness of melon, but also lead to "water rotten melon." Especially in the 10 days before the ripening of melon, we must pay attention to water control.

5. Increase lighting. The shed film should be rubbed cleanly, do not have water drops, the leaves that shaded around the melon should pay attention to thinning out, in order to increase the transparency between the plants.

6. Appropriate harvesting. Generally 30 to 35 days of melon development can fully mature, high sugar content, flavor is good. However, for the morning market, some melon farmers often harvest early and reduce the sweetness of melons. Proper harvesting is the basic measure to ensure the sweetness of muskmelon.