Plant Fact of the Day

Squeeze those melons

Today I'll inform you all on how to pick a ripe melon. First, it should smell sweet, and there shouldn't be any stem stub left on the melon; there should have been a clean break. If the melon is picked too soon, before it falls away from the vine, it will not get any sweeter, no matter how soft it gets. This is because the plant provides it with all of the sugars it will ever have, so the longer its attached, the sweeter it will be. Other features of ripe melons are the slight soft spots on the ends of the melon, particularly at the end opposite from where the stem was. You should also hear a sloshing sound when you shake them, indicating that the seeds are loose. If your choosing a cantalope, make sure the net like patterns don't rub off easily as well.

Roses

By request, here is a plant fact on roses, albeit a bit late.

According to fossil records, roses go back about 60 million years ago, and are said to have originated in Asia; then migrating across North America and Europe. Because of their vast array of collors, fragrances, and forms, they have been seen in cultures all throughout history. In ancient Rome, they were especially prized, importing them from Egypt's cut flower industry. As the Christians eventually took over, they saw them as a symbol of Rome's debauchery, and rejected them, until later, incorperating them into their society as well. Roses remain one of the most genetically engineered plant species around, with more than 25,000 types, by hybridizing species from all over the world; and have now been voted the national flower of the United States.

See previoius citation.