Melons, Pumpkins, Cantaloupes

Field evaluation of pollenizers for resistance to Fusarium wilt of watermelon in Maryland, 2014

Field evaluation of rescue treatments for manganese toxicity in muskmelon production in Maryland, 2015

Growers may already be seeing leaf symptoms on their cantaloupe plants that are often misdiagnosed as a foliar disease. However, these leaf symptoms described below indicate manganese (Mn) toxicity which is related to low soil pH.

Sulfur Deficiency in Corn and Watermelon

Plectosporium blight in many pumpkin fields

I have been seeing some ozone damage to cucurbits and oddly to tomatoes over the last 2 weeks or so, which is not unusual with the hot hazy conditions we are having. Ozone is the most common air pollutant in the eastern United States.

Vegetable and Fruit News, Volume 14, Issue 6 (August 2023). Topics include: Leafhopper Damage, Strawberries & Fall Nitrogen, High Spotted-Wing Drosophila Pressure, Chilling Injury in Apples, Corn Earworm Alert and Scouting Tips, and Cover Cropping for Vegetable.

A weird problem in cantaloupe fruit this season is that when examining it from the outside, the fruit looks good, but cutting it open reveals an interior with a dark, wet appearance in the fruit’s wall between the outer rind and the seed cavity (fig. 1).

The weather for the last week or so in our area has been ideal for air pollutants to cause injury to vegetable crops, especially cucurbits. One of these air pollutants is ozone, which is considered to be the most damaging phytotoxic air pollutant in North America. Injury is most likely during hot, humid weather with stagnant air masses.

I am seeing some plectosporium blight in a few pumpkin fields this year, not as bad as last year but still there. This disease will probably increase if we continue having frequent rains in some locations.