Varieties and types of melons: photo and description

The existing types of melons, grown in different countries, are striking in their diversity. Their fruits differ in shape, size, taste, but without exception these plants prefer a sunny and warm climate.

Short description

Melon - a representative of the family Pumpkin, falsely-berry, melon culture. This is an annual plant with a long creeping stem. The leaves are one-piece, palmate-lobed, composed of five lobes. Up to eight large fragrant berries can give one melon. The type of fruit in each variety is different and can have a round, cylindrical and even flattened shape. Pulp is greenish, yellow or orange in color.

A bit of history

Growing melons were engaged in ancient Egypt. The first mention of it is found in the Bible. It is believed that the birthplace of this melon culture is Northern India. Hence the spread of it to the west and to the east. In Europe, only in the XV century began to grow some types of melons. In Russia for the first time they appeared a little later and were imported first only to the Lower Volga region.

Beneficial features

Melon is very popular due to the fact that it contains a complex of important elements for man: iron, citric, malic and succinic acids, vitamins A, P, C. It also contains inosine, which helps to cleanse the body of cholesterol and helps to strengthen the roots of hair. The most often aromatic melon is used fresh, but there are a lot of recipes for making tasty jam and marinade. Often, to create genuine culinary masterpieces, it is added to meat.

Any kind of melon beneficial effect on the strengthening of immunity and nervous system, help to cope with the problem of insomnia. In view of the low caloric content, this false-berry can be included in almost any diet. It stimulates the cleansing of the body of slagging and helps the well-coordinated work of the intestines.

Melon - types and varieties

The photo of these amazing fruits is striking in variety. A huge number of existing varieties are divided into 3 groups - cantaloupe, net and smoothskins.

The first include ribbed melons with deep narrow grooves on the surface and having an oblate shape. Sweet flesh is rich in orange. The length of the fruit is 20-25 cm. Not suitable for long-term storage.

Reticulated melons usually have a regular spherical shape. The ribbing is weakly expressed. Its name is due to the surface of the fruit, covered with a grayish mesh. The flesh can be either orange, or greenish or white, depending on the variety.

Smooth-skinned kinds of a melon, as a rule, oblong, with a thin skin. The ribbing is practically absent.

Variety choice

Going to plant a melon on your site, you should remember that this plant is very thermophilic, and the ripening of its fruits occurs at a temperature of not less than 30 ° C. For the middle zone of Russia, where the summer is unpredictable, it is important to choose the right variety depending on the terms of vegetation. For example, some types of late-ripening melons take up to 120 days to ripen the fruit.

Main grades

These are the most popular types of melon. The list is quite large, but more often in our climatic conditions, you can find the following varieties:

• Alushta. Fruits of melons are large, up to one and a half kilograms, yellow-orange in color. The pulp is juicy. Ripening time is up to 70 days, and the fruitiness is very high.
• Gerrimus. The early-ripening variety is distinguished by good yield, the fruits are not large, smooth, light gray, with a juicy orange sweet flesh. The plant perfectly adapts to the natural conditions.
• Armenian cucumber, or Silvery. It differs in an exceptional form. Ready to eat young fruit with a characteristic scent, reaching kilogram weight. Melon perfectly copes with a drop in temperature and is resistant to a large number of diseases.
• Collective farmer. A very popular variety due to its exceptional taste qualities. The weight of a bright orange fruit of round shape is not more than 1 kg. The pulp is fragrant, sweet, surprisingly tender.
• Musky. A real midget in the world of melons. The fruit has a round or slightly flattened shape, with clear streaks. The pulp is fragrant and sweet, orange or light yellow in color.

Early-maturing varieties

• The millennium. The fruit has a round shape, slightly flattened. Pulp is very sweet, white. It should be grown both in greenhouse conditions or in greenhouses, and in open ground.
• Princess Anna. Early ripening hybrid, ready to please with fragrant fruits in two months. It is distinguished by strong powerful bushes. The fruit is visually attractive, oval in shape, the average weight is about 2 kg. The skin is milky-white, the pulp is soft orange, with honey taste, juicy. The plant is very unpretentious, can bear fruit and in the open ground, it is quite simple in care.
• Aikido. The hybrid appeared recently, but has already gained popularity due to immunity to diseases. The fruit is yellow-brown, with veins, the flesh is white-green, high in sugar.
• Canary. This hybrid has very early maturation periods of no more than 70 days (usually 60). The bush is quite easy to confuse with a cucumber, thanks to long shoots, reminiscent of a vine. Fruits are oval in shape, weighing from 1.5 to 3 kg, smooth, without veins, covered with light pubescence, solar yellow. They have fresh delicious greenish flesh with a characteristic honey flavor. The edible layer is quite large and reaches 7 cm. This variety is very resistant to most of the diseases characteristic of the culture: fusariosis, anthracnose, powdery mildew. He loves light and warmth, so if the night is very cold, it is recommended to cover the bed with a film. In general, it is very sensitive to light and melon heat.

The species and varieties bred in Russia represent Natal'ina. The fruit of this melon is round, pure, yellow, the skin is thin, white flesh with a slight shade of green, medium thickness, juicy and sweet. Remarkably transported, can be stored for a long time. Many gardeners are familiar lemon-yellow melon, derived in the Krasnodar region. It is distinguished by the fruit of a slightly flattened shape, a lemon tint (hence the name), covered with small dots. The weight does not exceed usually 1.5 kg. The pulp is solid, has a characteristic taste of vanilla.

Medium-ripening varieties

Altai. The maturation period is up to 80 days. The fruit is oval, bright yellow, about 1 kg, with a juicy pulp.

Early sweet. The shape of the fruit is close to spherical, slightly elongated, weighing up to 3 kg, bright yellow and smooth. The flesh is yellow-creamy, sweet, aromatic and surprisingly tasty. Bush and flowers are similar to cucumber. The variety perfectly copes with diseases anthracnose and powdery mildew, cold-resistant and unpretentious. To obtain a smart harvest, it is better to grow in a greenhouse, but in open areas, open soil is also suitable.

Assol. Fruits are oval in shape, full of yellow color with grayish stripes. The pulp is juicy, fragrant, tender yellowish shade. The variety was specially created for growing in private farms and on private plots. It has a very high yield index.

Golden. The fruit is oval, bright yellow in color, with stripes. The flesh is very juicy. Characteristic of the variety is a high content of vitamins. He perfectly copes with diseases, grows well in the open ground, but prefers greenhouse conditions.

The blondie. The time of appearance of fruits is 80-90 days after planting. The fruits are very large, slightly flattened, round in shape, small in size. Very juicy fragrant pulp of amazing taste. When the fruits are ready for harvesting, they signal this by the appearance of a specific flavor and color change to beige.

All of the above types of melons with good care yield a good harvest not only in the southern, but also in the middle latitudes.

Late grades

One of these melons has the corresponding name - Zimovka. The variety is very difficult to grow in the latitudes of the middle belt, but it grows well in the south. The owner of light fruit is yellowish green in color, covered with a net. The flesh is tender, greenish. Melon can be stored for a long time and is ideal for transportation.

Pineapple is a variety that requires at least 95 days to ripen. It is distinguished by oval netted fruits with a fragrant pulp that tastes like pineapple.

Torpedo - these melons have a peculiar elongated shape. The yellow peel is covered with a tiny mesh. Has a high resistance to disease and drought.

Grades of foreigners

Some growers also grow overseas kinds of melons (one of them can be seen below).

Charente hails from France, this amazing variety is distinguished by small round fruits with remarkable taste qualities. The color is soft yellow, close to white.

Ozhen is a guest from Israel: the shape is round or slightly oval, with a smooth surface, with a lot of veins, a greenish-yellow tone. It differs with a fragrant fleshy pulp of tender green color.

Handalyak is an Uzbek melon, which tastes very similar to a pear. Small in size, with a thin skin and greenish flesh.

Honey. Homeland of the variety is Morocco, its features: elongated shape of the fetus, lack of veins, orange-green color of the peel, honey pulp, juicy, pale yellow or with a reddish tinge.

Kassaba. Has come from Turkey, differs almost correct roundish form. Fruits appear late enough, closer to winter. The pulp is juicy, but almost completely devoid of flavor.

Virtually all varieties and types of melons, with photos and descriptions of which can be found in this article, have their advantages for growing in the central strip of Russia. But more suitable are early-maturing hybrids, resistant to both the vagaries of the weather, and to most diseases.