Sunshine and watermelons

John Denver wrote that sunshine on his shoulders made him happy, and my watermelons and me agree wholeheartedly with that statement. (And no, that's not a euphemism for anything else. I'm talking about watermelons here... in spite of the name of the blog, this is a G-rated entry)

We tore up a huge section of lawn on the west edge of our property in search of a big enough space and better sunshine for growing lavender and melons. I planted the melons on the same day and took these pictures last week. This one gets at least eight hours of sunshine a day.

This one gets about five or six hours of sunshine a day.

In the week since I took the photos, the big watermelon plant has gotten bigger and has at least five baby melons growing. I hope to be eating yellow doll watermelons in another two weeks.

The little plant has grown, too, but I think it will need another six months of summer to realize its full potential and produce anything big enough to eat.

I understand that feeling; I’d like another six months of summer myself. Unfortunately, we won’t get it!

Oh well, now I’m already thinking about next year, wondering what will survive and thrive in limited sunshine. Any ideas? E-mail the gardeners at letsgetdirty@gjsentinel.com.