Of hermaphrodite and other strange flowers of the Spuredda Tarantino

As those who know me would probably already know, I am always looking for new information and research in the area of cucumber-melons. Of particular interest to me was an article about the crossing of a Mediterranean snake melon with an Indian hermaphrodite melon. The article is entitled, “Impact of Breeding Hermaphroditic Melon on Early Production and Yield: Case of Snake Melon (Cucumismelo var. flexuosus) and Tibish (C. melo var. tibish)”  Though I know this is not the most thrilling thing to all of you, I found it pretty interesting and wondered what it would be like to grow some hermaphrodite carosello fruit. Shortly thereafter, I discovered some strange-looking female flowers growing on one of my Spuredda Tarantino. Could it be? If not a hermaphrodite flower, it is at least a complete or perfect flower (having both male and female parts on the same flower). I was able to self-pollinate each flower, which would lead me to believe that it was capable of self-pollinating if there was ample wind, but I’m not sure if they would have self-pollinated in a greenhouse (without insect pollinators).

A "perfect" melon flower with both male and female parts.

The first time I identified the strange female melon flowers

A closeup of the half-female flowers

The female flower getting ready to set fruit

The perfect melon flower with both anthers and stigma

Despite growing the fruit out and collecting the seed, I’m not exactly sure what to do with the seed now. I’m at a point of thinking “Now what?” Will another generation of this seed produce weird-looking fruit or will it produce something that looks different from the parent fruit? I’m not exactly sure. If someone more knowledgeable than myself knows, please leave a comment below.

Along with the hermaphrodite flowers there were a couple of double flowers. I find it interesting that both the hermaphrodite and double flowers appeared around the same time, early in the season – though not on the same plant. I knew that the double flower may have aborted or not grown fully, so instead of chancing something it, I intervened and pulled it early. Though still – double flowers are kind of interesting to see.

School Gardens

As I travel around for my job, I often encounter school and neighborhood gardens along the way. I hope you enjoy a few of the pictures from my travels. The first pictures are ones I took of a wall that is right along where I park next to a school.

 

Luffa

Luffas are quite interesting. I have never eaten them personally, but I have heard that they are best eaten immature.

 

Bitter Melon

Bitter melon is another Asian favorite for what reason I am not sure. They are apparently very helpful in controlling blood sugar, but as I am generally adverse to anything bitter, I have yet to try them.

 

Hyacinth Beans

I used to grow Purple Hyacinth Bean in Tucson. It was quite good, but a lot of work to prepare.

At another school, I was able to enjoy looking at some light Armenian Cucumbers.

This next garden is pretty fun. The school actually has two garden areas. This is just one of them.

 

 

 

 

Now that autumn has progressed, the vines of a lot of plants are done growing. I hope you enjoyed a few of the gardens I see as I travel around.

White Crab Spiders on Purple Daisies

While in the front yard of my friend's fertile garden, I noticed these little guys just waiting for their next meal. They look like some form of flower crab spider. Enjoy the pictures!

For all those of you who braved the spider pictures, here are some more pictures of the flowers by themselves.

 

Linda's Garden

A few months ago I had the opportunity to visit my Dad's house and have a look at the garden that my step-mother had created. Unlike my garden which is much more functional than aesthetic, the garden here was both functional and beautiful. Like me, you can see what vegetables, fruits and flowers you can identify or you can just appreciate the pictures for what they are. Either way, I hope you enjoy!

 

Happy June!

With the onset of summer, I am starting to really understand how hot it can get here in Fairfield. It has reached the upper 90s a few times, which has really helped the cucumber plants take off.

Arkansas Little Leaf Cucumber Growing

With the cooler nights, pickling cucumber varieties, such as my Arkansas Little Leaf cucumber, do a lot better than they ever did in Tucson.

One of my first female blossoms

The cool nights have also significantly affected my tomato production. I knew that tomatoes were easy to grow in Fairfield, but seeing the results of the right climate is impressive!

Uncaged Celebrities are migrating to the sidewalk

In talking with a gentleman selling tomatoes at the local farmer's market, tomatoes can be planted here in January. Perhaps I will try this next year, as cheap fresh tomatoes are often available here later in the season, but command a higher price this time of year.

The San Marzanos are picking up steam

The cool air that often blows in from the Suisun Marsh as well as the nearby delta enables the pollen from tomato blossoms to set fruit at a pretty high rate, as demonstrated by my one San Marzano tomato plant.

A few of my last Dingess Purple sweet potato plants.

Conversely, without the consistent heat and brutal sun that Tucson offered, my Dingess Purple sweet potato plants are just barely growing. Fortunately, one spot that I planted them in - on the south side of the house - is working out much better than near the rose bushes. Let's hope they can grow enough to produce a decent tuber.
 

South-facing Dingess Purple sweet potato plants

As a gardener, I sometimes laugh at myself when I forget a very basic technique from one year to another. The water-filled plastic containers surrounding my plants have made a dramatic difference in speeding up growth. Before planting next year, I'll have to gather more plastic jugs.
 

Dark Armenian cucumbers are finally taking off.

Cucumber Beetles are not very photogenic

Alas, cucumber beetles are difficult to avoid. After feeding off of dandelions early in the spring, they migrate to other flowers when the dandelions begin going to seed. Feasting upon pollen and petals, these beetles devour the innards of my roses and cucumbers, compelling me to carry out the serial killing of cold-blooded invertebrates.

Another Arkansas Little Leaf Cucumber plant

Cucumber & Melon plants

Overall, I am very grateful to live in a place where my long-term my health should improve while still being able to garden. Being a partner with a living, thriving, growing organism has blessed my life in so many ways. As others have said, gardening is cheaper than therapy - and you get tomatoes!

Tomatoes - starting to fill out