Growing melons in pots

Melons and cantaloupes can be grown in pots. Although the number of the fruits must be limited into 1 or 2 most per pots so that the size and the sweetness can be maxed out. Here were the 2 young melon plants that I grew from seeds.

 

I put them near my fence and use it as their climbing trellis. They grew up fast and I could see their male and female flowers blooming everywhere.

 

Soon they bear a fruit. Here's what a very young fruit look like. It was as big as a kiwi.

 

Once the fruit had gotten big, I made a net from plastic rope to help the vine with the fruit weight.

 

Each plant has 1 big fruit now.

 

One of them had the texture of its skin shown off, while the other had just started.

But, my melons got attacked by aphids and root bugs. They died quickly in just a few days like my cherry tomatoes before. It was very disheartening because the fruits have gotten more than 1 kg each. :( But they were still too young to be eaten... I guess I'll stick to crop/plants that's more resistant to bugs because I don't want to use pesticide. Have you ever grown melons? What melon variety is your favorite? The ones I grew here are green-fleshed cantaloupe melons which are commonly sold in our fruit market. :)

Growing red and green amaranth spinach in pots

Hi, Gardeners! Today I'd like to talk about the amaranth plants (Amaranthus spp) which is locally known as spinach in Indonesia. There are some species of amaranth that we use to cook as vegetables here, but the most common sold in the market place is the green and the red ones. My favorite of those two is the red amaranth. Besides more nutritious than the green one due to its red color (beta carotene), red amaranth is easier to grow and very fast to generate new leaves that can be harvested again in 2 weeks! I grow my amaranth in pots and I grow them from lower stalks that have roots. People here selling amaranth in a bundle and they usually still have roots. I just cut the stalks 10 cm above the root, dipping them in vitamin B12 for 3 hours and plant them in rich soil. Put the pots in shaded place for 3 days and gradually introduce them to the sun. Here are some red amaranth ready to harvest! :)

Below are some green amaranth in various ages that I grow from seeds. You can also grow them from the fresh stalks like I do with the red ones above. :)

Here's a close up look on a bunch of amaranth that I have just harvested for quick cooking with instant noodle. :D Eating instant noodle can be more nutritious if you throw an egg and some vegetables in it. Amaranth leaves are nutritionally similar to beets, Swiss chard and spinach, but are much superior. For example amaranth leaves contain three times more calcium and three times more niacin (vitamin B3) than the usual spinach leaves you eat. Amaranth is my favorite choice, besides the mustard green! :D

Harvested some more red amaranth, clean them and put them inside a tight closed plastic container and put it in a refrigerator. They can stay fresh for a few days. :)

And these yummy looking snack are green amaranth leaves that I fried with flour and spices. They are very crispy, and maybe more healthy than potato chips? :D They are still very greasy though. Have you had any experiences growing some spinach? What kind of spinach do you grow? Please comment below! Thanks. :)

A yellow butterfly landing on my hand

A few month ago when I started gardening I experienced what some of you might have, a butterfly landing on your hand. I was out to my porch with my pocket camera to take photos of my water spinach sprouts. After one or two photos, there came this tiny yellow butterfly that flying around me and my pots.

It lands on me when I gave it my hand. I wonder it was Pocky's spirit who wanted to say hello. Pocky was my little lovebird who passed away years ago. I know butterflies represent the spirits of our passed away family members, friends or pets. But that month was not his hatch day or his death anniversary month... so maybe I thought too much... :D

Here's a clear photo of the butterfly, it was resting on the ground. I wonder if it was a female one and she was actually laying eggs on the ground. I read some butterflies lay eggs on dirt instead of the leaves. Do you know what species is this one? I went back into my house to get honey and I offered it with a toothpick but the butterfly didn't want it. :P The photo of me offering the honey was very blurry so I didn't post it here. But it was the same way with how I fed a dragonfly on my previous blog post. Btw, do you know they can refuse food with their tiny feet? It's like a cat who refuses a kiss by putting their paws on your lips. :D