[Jenn]

Yeah, I'm bragging. So how do you tell when watermelons are ripe? And 'cantaloupes', although those surely have another month to go?

It's all I can do not to drag poor DH out there every day to peer through the vines looking for them... cluster of cantaloupes as the seed packet said they'd do, and hidden watermelons and a few pretty obvious ones now all over.

 

[chas]

I can smell ripe lopes on the vine,then I just start lifting melons till one falls off the vine.They slip off very easy when dead ripe.
My watermellons turn from white to yellow on the bottom side and the stem turns a little blacker and thinner.
Chas

 

[junie]

Here is a site that will tell you all you need to know about growing fruits and vegetables, including when to pick them. Just choose your fruit or veggie ~

http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/veggies/index.html

 

[Randy Rooster]

Lopes will slip when ready. Watermelons stems will die back when ripe. Its simple as that.