Vegetable Varieties for Gardeners

Reviewed on 05/01/2005 by California Olive - An experienced gardener
Overall Taste Yield Ease	California, United States Frost Free Season: More than 203 days Soil Texture: Clay Garden Size: Large - More than 1,600 square feet (40' x 40') Sun Exposure: More than 8 hours per day
This is the best melon we have ever grown or bought (we don't live too far from a specialty melon packing house). Flesh is very sweet and tender. Flavor and plant vigor were superior to Burpee Early Hybrid Crenshaw grown in the next row. Unlike many older Crenshaw types, the stem of Early Sugarshaw slips when the melon is ripe, so there is no guessing. The skin turns almost entirely yellow when ripe in our climate, as well. After the initial flush of fruits, we got scattered fruits ripening through fall. Fall-ripenened melons were not as sweet as those ripened in hot weather. Traditional Crenshaw melons are grown mostly in dry-summer areas of California and Arizona. Fruits may require shading against sunburn. Early Sugarshaw fruits do not seem to need protection from sunburn in our climate (typically about 10 degrees cooler than Phoenix in summer - still pretty hot). It is sold by OSC in Ontario, Canada, so may also be adapted to the northeast. However, as with other specialty melons, fruits should be kept off moist ground to prevent rotting. Fruits keep for a few days at room temperature.

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