I grew this one year in a raised bed garden ,and man, did it take over!! I always tell people about Kiwanis needing its own zip code if you plant it !!!
That little Tuckie boy loves his vegetables!!!! I have never seen a dog love veggies as much as Tuck! OMG - what an adorable puppy. I bet you guys love him to pieces! Such a cute addition to every video too.
I grow these here in Arkansas and they need our full growing season. I've gotten over 200 kiwanos from only four vines! I sold them for $2-$3 apiece at farmer's markets. They have an amazing shelf life and will continue to ripen all winter long if brought inside.
Oh I am from Zimbabwe that is the most prolific free source of food...we just love them in Zimbabwe. But we have a 9 month growing season...hope you like the taste. I prefer it yellow and a little limey tasting.
Thanks! Yeah, Masanobu has played a huge role in my gardening life his quote is still my favorite garden quote of all time and it constantly comes to me in the garden. “The ultimate goal of farming is not the growing of crops, but the cultivation and perfection of human beings.” Every year it means more and more to me. ❤️
Chio Hi! Maybe you could tell me what to do with shiso. I got them growing all over the place. I know it’s sesame and they are getting ready to bloom and that you can eat the leaves but how do you prepare them. Most receipes I find are pretty scarce and don’t say much. Can they be used like grape leaves stuffed with rice etc? I’d really appreciate any suggestions even where to check things out. Have a great day and stay safe. 🖖🏻👍🏻❤️🐾🐾🐾🙋🏼♀️
@@catherinegrace2366 I'm from Tokyo so I didn't know nothing about gardening till I moved to Texas 10 yrs ago. But now gardening is the one helping me a lot this year mentally physically! :)
@@Murphis55 Thank you. I think shiso and sesami are different. We use shiso as a garnish but you can make tempura out of it. If it's red one, some people make pretty color juice. It's super good for you. :)
The good thing about kiwano is they last a long time off the vine - months. So when all your other summer veg have gone by winter, you'll still have kiwano to eat.
Kiwano's are one of my favourite things to eat🤭 where I live we eat them with a pinch of salt. The peels of the fruit are also dried and put in some meat dishes.
I came across this fruit in Kenya last year. They call it "Spike Melon" and its soooo popular. I remember the flavour very well, and always imagined it going really well in a berry smoothie. Well done.
Hi James. It's called Kiwano. It grows wild in the desert and that's why you yours grow so prolifiric because it requires no water to grow. And it must not be eaten green but when it is bright orange. The Bushmen in the Kalahari eat it to quench their thirst.
Thank you for your video! The red plant is very beautiful, you can cut it back and mulch it, before it goes to seed, it will just come up again next year, that would be great if the butterflies love it. It's so big and beautiful.
Another great video. You have influenced me to grow a food forest. Year 7 and I planted 14 baby fruit trees, then ordered 2 apricot and 2 plum trees. I can't stop!! Give tuck a hug for me.
Hey James, you can rip that melon plant down and feed it to your hens. I had a similar issue with a different type of melon. As I was tearing my melon plant down, my hens had the leaves and fruit cleaned up in minutes, leaving the vines for my compost.
I grew up eating these wild cucumber, from a little child. Our children and grandkids love to eat them too. I dont wait until they are orange in colur. When they are half the size you showed in this video, is when we like to eat them. We called them "Garka". Lots of love to dear "Tuck" 🤗❤️🤗
I planted these this year and managed the vines .If you have shorter growing season ...once they start to turn bring them in and finish ripening them.Fully ripe they taste like a banana kiwi lime ...very tasty
Fun tour! Loved the hazmat suit! 😂 I’m in Zone 6B and planted in the beginning of September. We’ve had a huge windstorm and two weeks of fires in our region, so the sun has been blocked out quite a bit...but everything is plugging away. I haven’t had a garden in decades, and you were a big inspiration to get out there and do it. I have four raised beds: carrots, chard, spinach, chives, cilantro, lettuce, squash, arugula, basil, beets, cabbage, peas, amaranth, green beans, pickling cucumbers, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli, green onions, kale, radishes, dill, mustard and parsley. It’s exciting to see how things will grow...nothing ventured, nothing gained. Anyways, thank you for the inspiration!
Your energy keeps me inspired. It has been a rough garden season in Northern California with temps way over 100 for the entire summer. It has to be some sort of record. I kept everything alive and the plants look good but the vegetables did not flower well under the heat. Even the tomatoes. Okra and peppers did well. That’s about it. I’m praying for a late harvest and putting in the winter crops now. Thank you James and Tuck!
Thank you soooo much for telling me what I don't want to grow in my small backyard garden! I have 4 raised beds, 2 are quite small and 4 small containers. I want to grow as much as I can that we like. You are a big help with valuable info and great pics! Thanks
Thank you for the warning! Sounds like a plant that should only be grown by people who already know they love it. Or maybe, as you suggest, as security landscaping.
Hey James, My great grandmother made the best grape juice ever and she made sure to leave the grapes on the vine until the first good frost hit them. Of course it makes them sweeter. Great teaching all through the video. Thanks for sharing so we can be successful!
Birds have eaten ALL my grapes this year, before they even fully ripened...and there were a lot of grapes. I dont mind, its just interesting as they never did that before. Local food sources must be poor?
James, not that I would grow the horned cucumber, but there are folks who adore sour and use vinegar on just about every veggie they grow. So your warning to grow it far away from the mainstream areas is good. But the plant is probably worthwhile to many people. I found that pole beans also put out a lot of vine, blocks Sun, so I tamed down that planting as well. As a matter of fact, I doubt I'll plant pole beans again. Live and learn.
Someone had planted a very hot red pepper tree in our yard which grows the flat type of about 2 inches long. It was very beautiful and leaves were fall colored in Fall . But it was so invasive. Above ground, the new growth had spread 50 feet in all directions going up the walls of our side and back neighbors in a very short time. I knocked it down to prevent "The Blob" from murdering our neighbors. What a job as I worked 2 weeks digging up the below-ground roots in all directions. These roots grew horizontally at the 12 inch underground level. Are you sure your hot pepper tree is safe? You have a great garden and I love how you can keep track of your staggered crops.
Oh boy that horn melon thing looks really seedy too... and it's not even ripe yet! Wow! Thanks for the tip. FYI - I love rose gauntlet gloves - long leather ones - for dealing with spikey plants. They have become my fav gardening gloves.
I love your garden. You surely know what you are doing. Tuck is awesome, I never knew dogs are so many different veggies. I will surely share my vegetables with my dogs, chickens and ducks. Way to go Tuck
Hi James how have you been. Yes a friend of mine in Australia is having the same problem with that Veg. They grow like weeds and over take the whole garden. That Veg does good in Africa they call it a wild cucumber and they seem to enjoy it. You and Tuck Take care. Always enjoy you Videos.👍🇨🇦
I so agree. I dislike plenting vegetables that I am not going to eat. And my point is to grow what we going to eat. Wonderful vidio with so much info! Thank you for what you do!
Your garden is really beautiful. I just wanted to mention that I'm a spinach lover, too. This year I was able to grow something called Egyptian spinach and it loves heat. Unfortunately, I discovered it's pretty shallow rooted during hurricane Sally. I didn't lose the whole thing, but it does taste delicious. Thanks for sharing your garden with us.
That is a good point regarding using it as a guerilla garden plant. I've been thinking about planting a guerilla garden one of these years or do some perennial plantings of native edibles in local public areas or along roadside
I just love your Channel, such energy and you make so much sense, Appreciate your honesty, it's helped me quite a bit here in TN. Straight up thanks for sharing your good and bad trials!
My grandfather would love this he grew a garden in a lot behind his house next to railroad tracks and industries north and south of his home yet he had a pear tree grew string beens watermelon pumpkin sunflower grew. Large sunflower that made the local paper him standing next to it I loved my grandfather so
Hey! Not sure what you did with the horned melon but when we grow it, it doesn't invade the garden like that! It actually just comes up alongside other plants, maize, melons and pumpkins. We don't even tend to the crop, it just does well on It's own (without any aid). Also, they aren't meant to be sour 😁
I would like to know also which zone. Maybe his ground had too much of something that grows an abundance of leaves on that horned plant rather then fruit. It sure had a huge stalk.
@@joyceobeys6818 In Zimbabwe we don't plant them, they grow on their own with maize and pumpkins. We peel them or just taking off the horns and make a salad just like cucumber 🥒 😊using with just tomato, onion, salt and vinegar 😋
I have to disagree. I grew kiwanos (horned melon) this year and they have a mild, tropical flavor, I'd compare to banana with lime. Let them ripen first. The flavor is very different. If your growing season is too short for a vine ripen, you can pick green and use the apple method to ripen them. I have 60-70 melons and am trying to find a good jam recipe for them.
@@catstack_ The part you would usually eat wouldn't pickle because it's VERY wet. However, since the entire melon is edible, I don't see any reason why the rind wouldn't pickle very nicely. Now I want to try it. :)
Great info Sorry to hear bout’ your lack of success with the kiwano melon though it is a great lesson learned that not all plants are meant to be grown in certain areas. I live near Houston Texas and I grow the kiwano melon and first year it took over my whole 5 by 5 bed! this year I decided to give it its own 5 by 5 bed along with a metal trellis and it was easier to manage and produced more fruit.... to be fair the growin’ season down here is longer so there is that too. I also planted it by a fence and it engulfed a fence essentially only plant if you have a lot of room and if your willing to get spiked.
You were a big inspiration for me this year! Planted a lot of things to see what would grow for me. My squash, cucumber, and pumpkin got devastated by squash borers, and the replacements didn’t take, any advice? I saw some people say wrapping the base of the stems with foil. Will try that again next year. My pea seeds didn’t take off very well either, and I planted another round last week and they aren’t showing much. I’m in 6b climate. My motto is “Every year better!” And my tomatoes, beans, arugula, peppers, lettuce greens, and celery did phenomenally. God bless you and Tuck!
This is an amazing plant to grow along the fence. As long as you got the time to direct the vines where you want them to grow. But they grow and cover the fence like a creeper or an English ivy plant, and the fruit is amazing.
Interesting I grew them for the first time last year and couldn't get enough. I was upset this year I planted seeds and birds or chipmunk must have gotten to the seed because I don't have any Kiwano in my garden. I loved the citrus taste but yes you have to watch your fingers picking them. I used a vegetable peeler and cut the spikes off that way and ate them like they were going out of style because they taste so good.
I think you are supposed to fold the leaves over the cauliflower heads to keep them white. Castle Hill Gardening youtube channel said something like that.
It sounds like the spiky melon is really suited for longer warm seasons and loads more space. I think it's incredible that all that grew from one seed. If you want it to play well with others, you might have to prune way more.
Instead of the horned melon, try Melothria Scabra aka Mexican Sour Gherkin/mouse melon. It’s a great plant! It’s like a miniature cucumber in appearance and habit, the fruits are like small sour cucumbers with a melony taste. It’s much more compact than even a standard cuke and very productive. Could also be good for small spaces like a porch
Pamela Swan This is the first I’ve heard of lemon cucumbers. I hope I can find some. I’m desperately trying to find out the name of the purple peppers he grows, so pretty!
The Gardening Channel With James Prigioni I’d like to know the name of the purple peppers you grow, so pretty! I grew Candy Cane, Snackabelles, CA Wonders, & poblanos this summer.
@@jonihughey1352 Google the Lemon Cucumbers and Peppers if he is out collecting his harvest and can't answer. I'ev grown lemon cucumbers many times but I never picked them small- they were so much better and I got sooo many more- delicious !
We had a freakishly early first snowfall where I live (first week of September! I think it even made national news!), but it warmed up quickly enough that my cool weather crops actually benefited from it. I probably have another three or four weeks before the hard frosts start happening, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a good yield of peas and brassicas.
Have you ever tried Jacari Melon? Tried it this year. It's delicious, but I only got 2 this summer. Was going to rip it out and discovered 6 more! Am hoping a couple ripen before my first frost. Fingers crossed! Pruned the smallest.
That’s a kiwano melon! It’s supposed to taste like lime jello. I have some just growing but they are sure sore and pokey, they get through my gardening gloves
They really, really grow, went up a bush and covered the top of it with vines. I do have about 30 big spiky fruits and a half dozen are yellow brown but the ripening process is really slow and I have to constantly trim off the fast growing vine leaders to keep them off my other vegetables. It is from seeds from a store bought Kiwano, they aren't bad when ripe, the flavor reminds me of the Ectoplasmic Green Ghostbuster's Hi-C drink they used to sell in the mid 80s. But next year I can't have this huge mess in my garden and will put in something else like summer squash. My kohlrabi all got destroyed down to stumps overnight probably by mice as I am back with the traps and got 6 over the last few nights so the darn things are back en mass after I knocked down their numbers in July. It looks like brassica family stuff is a problem in my location.
I can’t wait until my persimmon brings fruiting. I just planted it this spring, so it’ll need another year or two to fruit. I hope you do a video on yours in another month or two when yours ripen.
I like what you said about learning what other countries do well at. Its so true. Why not benefit from the knowledge of things that other people have perfected?
Thank you James! I was looking to see what African Horned Melon was like, now I know! I like to incorporate a lot of variety in my garden as well. It's always fun to try new things.
A couple of thoughts: Let the Shiso go to seed and re-seed itself. Saves you buying new seed to plant it next year, saves you planting time next season. What it will spread randomly? That's a good thing, when your productive plants start taking over and there's no room for unwelcome weeds! On the horned melon - it may not be a good choice for a small planned garden where you need efficiency, but it also might be a good choice to put in a space you want to convert to garden from something else. Put that in, let it smother everything that's in the space, then cut it back and either put it in the compost pile or just leave it in place as mulch. Let it do a bunch of the preparation work on a new garden space.
My Lemon cucumber did not do well this year Maybe Two small ones, and lots of vines My regular cukes and a Dragon Cucumber did GREAT. Made alot of Juice this year.
Hey mate I’m in Port Stephens nsw and I had one horn melon plant come up in one of my raised beds I don’t know where it came from but I’ve used it in my jerky. And I also had it as a topping on ice cream and yogurt. I think it should be grown on a trellis it keep it up and easier to harvest. Any way I love your channel and give Tuk a pat from Australia.
I love growing unusual plants now. Thanks for the warning on that cucumber.....I hate thorny plants. I'm having fun growing moringa trees and giving them away. I'm determined to turn my backyard into a food forest.😊
They are actually pretty good when ripe and have a really cool texture but unless you live somewhere with a lot of space and a very long season they aren’t the best idea.
I pulled my one raspberry plant out because I couldn't even go near it without getting stuck to it. I need your raincoat to pass.by it. I am going to research some thornless ones. Hopefully they're just as sweet. Ellen, Florida gardener
We grew some gourds one time that took over an area. At one point we were growing birdhouse gourds because I liked cleaning them up, painting them and turning them into bird houses. Since we were growing gourds we tried different varieties. We have stopped growing gourds but one type has returned every year since. It has small round gourds and we always seem to miss at least one because they come back year after year. Maybe next year I will be more vigilant and make sure I catch them before they get big enough to produce.
We had our first frost in SE Connecticut this week. I lost most of my Zucchini and peppers took a beating. Lucky my green starts were already in. Huge harvest of salad greens tonight. Tomatoes still hanging in. I will try some of your Japanese and Italian suggestions in Spring.
Can't get enough of your energy and advise. And Tucky makes me smile!!
Awe you're sweet! Thanks for the kind words Renee
I grew this one year in a raised bed garden ,and man, did it take over!! I always tell people about Kiwanis needing its own zip code if you plant it !!!
That little Tuckie boy loves his vegetables!!!! I have never seen a dog love veggies as much as Tuck! OMG - what an adorable puppy. I bet you guys love him to pieces! Such a cute addition to every video too.
My daughter's pug loves veggies.
11:56 you rub your hands in anticipation. Your pure joy is so contagious and inspiring. Thank you! Keep it up!
I grow these here in Arkansas and they need our full growing season. I've gotten over 200 kiwanos from only four vines! I sold them for $2-$3 apiece at farmer's markets. They have an amazing shelf life and will continue to ripen all winter long if brought inside.
He showed other things so which one are you talking about? Is it the spikey cucumber thing?
@@BaawBee yes
They are definitely prolific growers...
The "What's going on" at the start always makes me smile.
Glad to hear that my friend 😁❤️
Oh I am from Zimbabwe that is the most prolific free source of food...we just love them in Zimbabwe. But we have a 9 month growing season...hope you like the taste. I prefer it yellow and a little limey tasting.
As a Japanese, I'm happy to see that you like shiso and Japanese cucumber. But most of all you respect Masanobu Fukuoka. Thank you :)
Thanks! Yeah, Masanobu has played a huge role in my gardening life his quote is still my favorite garden quote of all time and it constantly comes to me in the garden. “The ultimate goal of farming is not the growing of crops, but the cultivation and perfection of human beings.” Every year it means more and more to me. ❤️
Chio I love it that someone from Japan watches my favorite gardener’s channel. 👋
Chio Hi! Maybe you could tell me what to do with shiso. I got them growing all over the place. I know it’s sesame and they are getting ready to bloom and that you can eat the leaves but how do you prepare them. Most receipes I find are pretty scarce and don’t say much. Can they be used like grape leaves stuffed with rice etc? I’d really appreciate any suggestions even where to check things out. Have a great day and stay safe. 🖖🏻👍🏻❤️🐾🐾🐾🙋🏼♀️
@@catherinegrace2366 I'm from Tokyo so I didn't know nothing about gardening till I moved to Texas 10 yrs ago. But now gardening is the one helping me a lot this year mentally physically! :)
@@Murphis55 Thank you. I think shiso and sesami are different. We use shiso as a garnish but you can make tempura out of it. If it's red one, some people make pretty color juice. It's super good for you. :)
The good thing about kiwano is they last a long time off the vine - months. So when all your other summer veg have gone by winter, you'll still have kiwano to eat.
Thank you!
Kiwano's are one of my favourite things to eat🤭 where I live we eat them with a pinch of salt. The peels of the fruit are also dried and put in some meat dishes.
Thank you! I love them!!
I am also a fan of bitter melon as well.
I also love them, I chill them in the fridge then cut in wedges to eat. To me they are very refreshing on a hot summer day.
I came across this fruit in Kenya last year. They call it "Spike Melon" and its soooo popular. I remember the flavour very well, and always imagined it going really well in a berry smoothie. Well done.
Hi James. It's called Kiwano. It grows wild in the desert and that's why you yours grow so prolifiric because it requires no water to grow. And it must not be eaten green but when it is bright orange. The Bushmen in the Kalahari eat it to quench their thirst.
I’ve heard it’s also called tsama.
It is not a cucumber but a thorn melon and you have to wait for it to ripen.when it is ripe it is very nice.
Thank you!
Thank you for your video! The red plant is very beautiful, you can cut it back and mulch it, before it goes to seed, it will just come up again next year, that would be great if the butterflies love it. It's so big and beautiful.
Another great video. You have influenced me to grow a food forest. Year 7 and I planted 14 baby fruit trees, then ordered 2 apricot and 2 plum trees. I can't stop!! Give tuck a hug for me.
Hey James, you can rip that melon plant down and feed it to your hens.
I had a similar issue with a different type of melon. As I was tearing my melon plant down, my hens had the leaves and fruit cleaned up in minutes, leaving the vines for my compost.
I grew up eating these wild cucumber, from a little child.
Our children and grandkids love to eat them too.
I dont wait until they are orange in colur. When they are half the size you showed in this video, is when we like to eat them.
We called them "Garka".
Lots of love to dear "Tuck"
🤗❤️🤗
I planted these this year and managed the vines .If you have shorter growing season ...once they start to turn bring them in and finish ripening them.Fully ripe they taste like a banana kiwi lime ...very tasty
Thanks for “the rest of the story” on this attractive vegetable. I also heard the roots can get into an underground irrigation system.
Fun tour! Loved the hazmat suit! 😂 I’m in Zone 6B and planted in the beginning of September. We’ve had a huge windstorm and two weeks of fires in our region, so the sun has been blocked out quite a bit...but everything is plugging away. I haven’t had a garden in decades, and you were a big inspiration to get out there and do it. I have four raised beds: carrots, chard, spinach, chives, cilantro, lettuce, squash, arugula, basil, beets, cabbage, peas, amaranth, green beans, pickling cucumbers, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli, green onions, kale, radishes, dill, mustard and parsley. It’s exciting to see how things will grow...nothing ventured, nothing gained. Anyways, thank you for the inspiration!
Tuck is so cute .thank him for the video and you too!
Your energy keeps me inspired. It has been a rough garden season in Northern California with temps way over 100 for the entire summer. It has to be some sort of record. I kept everything alive and the plants look good but the vegetables did not flower well under the heat. Even the tomatoes. Okra and peppers did well. That’s about it. I’m praying for a late harvest and putting in the winter crops now.
Thank you James and Tuck!
Thank you soooo much for telling me what I don't want to grow in my small backyard garden! I have 4 raised beds, 2 are quite small and 4 small containers. I want to grow as much as I can that we like. You are a big help with valuable info and great pics! Thanks
Thank you for the warning! Sounds like a plant that should only be grown by people who already know they love it. Or maybe, as you suggest, as security landscaping.
That is a very good idea as a security landscape
Hey James, My great grandmother made the best grape juice ever and she made sure to leave the grapes on the vine until the first good frost hit them. Of course it makes them sweeter. Great teaching all through the video. Thanks for sharing so we can be successful!
Birds have eaten ALL my grapes this year, before they even fully ripened...and there were a lot of grapes. I dont mind, its just interesting as they never did that before. Local food sources must be poor?
James, not that I would grow the horned cucumber, but there are folks who adore sour and use vinegar on just about every veggie they grow. So your warning to grow it far away from the mainstream areas is good. But the plant is probably worthwhile to many people. I found that pole beans also put out a lot of vine, blocks Sun, so I tamed down that planting as well. As a matter of fact, I doubt I'll plant pole beans again. Live and learn.
Someone had planted a very hot red pepper tree in our yard which grows the flat type of about 2 inches long. It was very beautiful and leaves were fall colored in Fall . But it was so invasive. Above ground, the new growth had spread 50 feet in all directions going up the walls of our side and back neighbors in a very short time. I knocked it down to prevent "The Blob" from murdering our neighbors. What a job as I worked 2 weeks digging up the below-ground roots in all directions. These roots grew horizontally at the 12 inch underground level. Are you sure your hot pepper tree is safe? You have a great garden and I love how you can keep track of your staggered crops.
Tuck is so cute and I love how he eats healthy .I think him digging in the garden helps .
Oh boy that horn melon thing looks really seedy too... and it's not even ripe yet! Wow! Thanks for the tip. FYI - I love rose gauntlet gloves - long leather ones - for dealing with spikey plants. They have become my fav gardening gloves.
James, you are very fortunate to have a little dog who does your harvesting for you!! Hahahahaha ...............he is adorable.
I love your garden. You surely know what you are doing. Tuck is awesome, I never knew dogs are so many different veggies. I will surely share my vegetables with my dogs, chickens and ducks. Way to go Tuck
dang thats a beast of a plant.!!I love the color of shiso. Have to have it in the garden every year.
So adorable!! Tuck helping himself!!
Hi James how have you been. Yes a friend of mine in Australia is having the same problem with that Veg. They grow like weeds and over take the whole garden. That Veg does good in Africa they call it a wild cucumber and they seem to enjoy it. You and Tuck Take care. Always enjoy you Videos.👍🇨🇦
Food forest is such a good idea, especially for those that like to go out and eat your meals as you harvest all the goodness from the garden.
I so agree. I dislike plenting vegetables that I am not going to eat. And my point is to grow what we going to eat.
Wonderful vidio with so much info!
Thank you for what you do!
Thank you. Your videos are always enjoyable.
Your garden is really beautiful. I just wanted to mention that I'm a spinach lover, too. This year I was able to grow something called Egyptian spinach and it loves heat. Unfortunately, I discovered it's pretty shallow rooted during hurricane Sally. I didn't lose the whole thing, but it does taste delicious. Thanks for sharing your garden with us.
That is a good point regarding using it as a guerilla garden plant. I've been thinking about planting a guerilla garden one of these years or do some perennial plantings of native edibles in local public areas or along roadside
I just love your Channel, such energy and you make so much sense, Appreciate your honesty, it's helped me quite a bit here in TN. Straight up thanks for sharing your good and bad trials!
My grandfather would love this he grew a garden in a lot behind his house next to railroad tracks and industries north and south of his home yet he had a pear tree grew string beens watermelon pumpkin sunflower grew. Large sunflower that made the local paper him standing next to it I loved my grandfather so
“Tuck Approved”’ should be on a T shirt
My dogs approved list includes chicken and cat crap... Not such a good t-shirt
Joel TM I agree
Another great video James. Love your energy and passion, while also being humble and wholesome.
Great job
Hey! Not sure what you did with the horned melon but when we grow it, it doesn't invade the garden like that! It actually just comes up alongside other plants, maize, melons and pumpkins. We don't even tend to the crop, it just does well on It's own (without any aid). Also, they aren't meant to be sour 😁
Interesting
I would like to know also which zone.
Maybe his ground had too much of something that grows an abundance of leaves on that horned plant rather then fruit. It sure had a huge stalk.
@@joyceobeys6818 In Zimbabwe we don't plant them, they grow on their own with maize and pumpkins. We peel them or just taking off the horns and make a salad just like cucumber 🥒 😊using with just tomato, onion, salt and vinegar 😋
I have to disagree. I grew kiwanos (horned melon) this year and they have a mild, tropical flavor, I'd compare to banana with lime. Let them ripen first. The flavor is very different. If your growing season is too short for a vine ripen, you can pick green and use the apple method to ripen them. I have 60-70 melons and am trying to find a good jam recipe for them.
Excellent! I love them too! Thank you!!
Would they make good pickles?
@@catstack_ The part you would usually eat wouldn't pickle because it's VERY wet. However, since the entire melon is edible, I don't see any reason why the rind wouldn't pickle very nicely. Now I want to try it. :)
Great info Sorry to hear bout’ your lack of success with the kiwano melon though it is a great lesson learned that not all plants are meant to be grown in certain areas. I live near Houston Texas and I grow the kiwano melon and first year it took over my whole 5 by 5 bed! this year I decided to give it its own 5 by 5 bed along with a metal trellis and it was easier to manage and produced more fruit.... to be fair the growin’ season down here is longer so there is that too. I also planted it by a fence and it engulfed a fence essentially only plant if you have a lot of room and if your willing to get spiked.
The fruits are delicious! I grow it here in southern MD.
You were a big inspiration for me this year! Planted a lot of things to see what would grow for me. My squash, cucumber, and pumpkin got devastated by squash borers, and the replacements didn’t take, any advice? I saw some people say wrapping the base of the stems with foil. Will try that again next year. My pea seeds didn’t take off very well either, and I planted another round last week and they aren’t showing much. I’m in 6b climate.
My motto is “Every year better!” And my tomatoes, beans, arugula, peppers, lettuce greens, and celery did phenomenally.
God bless you and Tuck!
Always a joy hearing and seeing your site.
Thanks Rick, I appreciate that my friend
This is an amazing plant to grow along the fence. As long as you got the time to direct the vines where you want them to grow. But they grow and cover the fence like a creeper or an English ivy plant, and the fruit is amazing.
Interesting I grew them for the first time last year and couldn't get enough. I was upset this year I planted seeds and birds or chipmunk must have gotten to the seed because I don't have any Kiwano in my garden. I loved the citrus taste but yes you have to watch your fingers picking them. I used a vegetable peeler and cut the spikes off that way and ate them like they were going out of style because they taste so good.
I think you are supposed to fold the leaves over the cauliflower heads to keep them white. Castle Hill Gardening youtube channel said something like that.
I'm so glad I found this channel. You have my dream garden!
Tuck approved!! That vine is like the kudzu of the cuburbit family!
Love Tuck. Would like to find a Tuck for my little Chihuahua who looooves Yorkies
Your channel is so amazing. Thank you for sharing Tuck with us. 🌷🌷🌷
It sounds like the spiky melon is really suited for longer warm seasons and loads more space. I think it's incredible that all that grew from one seed. If you want it to play well with others, you might have to prune way more.
Instead of the horned melon, try Melothria Scabra aka Mexican Sour Gherkin/mouse melon. It’s a great plant! It’s like a miniature cucumber in appearance and habit, the fruits are like small sour cucumbers with a melony taste. It’s much more compact than even a standard cuke and very productive. Could also be good for small spaces like a porch
I think Tuck and yourself will live a long healthy life . Love your videos. So informative and inspiring
Always love your videos. Growing my fall garden in containers right now. It’s growing great with your help. Thank you! Love Tuck too!
I've had a great year with lemon cucumbers thanks to your advice to pick cucumbers small-they were so much better small too- no peeling !
I love to hear that Pamela! The lemon cukes are definitely a winner, and I'm happy to here you are using the more you pick the more you get method ❤️
Pamela Swan This is the first I’ve heard of lemon cucumbers. I hope I can find some. I’m desperately trying to find out the name of the purple peppers he grows, so pretty!
The Gardening Channel With James Prigioni I’d like to know the name of the purple peppers you grow, so pretty! I grew Candy Cane, Snackabelles, CA Wonders, & poblanos this summer.
@@jonihughey1352 Google the Lemon Cucumbers and Peppers if he is out collecting his harvest and can't answer. I'ev grown lemon cucumbers many times but I never picked them small- they were so much better and I got sooo many more- delicious !
I grew these apple ones, the Sikkim and the market mores. They were all great!
Lol, the enthusiasm in these videos is what keeps me coming back. Keep it up!
We had a freakishly early first snowfall where I live (first week of September! I think it even made national news!), but it warmed up quickly enough that my cool weather crops actually benefited from it. I probably have another three or four weeks before the hard frosts start happening, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a good yield of peas and brassicas.
That would make a great fence 😊
I really appreciate the heads up on annoying plants.
Have you ever tried Jacari Melon? Tried it this year. It's delicious, but I only got 2 this summer. Was going to rip it out and discovered 6 more! Am hoping a couple ripen before my first frost. Fingers crossed! Pruned the smallest.
What is this? Sounds really good!
That’s a kiwano melon!
It’s supposed to taste like lime jello. I have some just growing but they are sure sore and pokey, they get through my gardening gloves
They really, really grow, went up a bush and covered the top of it with vines. I do have about 30 big spiky fruits and a half dozen are yellow brown but the ripening process is really slow and I have to constantly trim off the fast growing vine leaders to keep them off my other vegetables. It is from seeds from a store bought Kiwano, they aren't bad when ripe, the flavor reminds me of the Ectoplasmic Green Ghostbuster's Hi-C drink they used to sell in the mid 80s. But next year I can't have this huge mess in my garden and will put in something else like summer squash. My kohlrabi all got destroyed down to stumps overnight probably by mice as I am back with the traps and got 6 over the last few nights so the darn things are back en mass after I knocked down their numbers in July. It looks like brassica family stuff is a problem in my location.
Keep growing them. They’re delicious! You can’t judge this fruit by eating it green. They’re ripe when ORANGE.
James, LOOK OUT!!! At 5:14 that THING is sneaking up behind you! YIKES!
I saw that too😂
😁 i was like, what? That plant getting annoyed by his comments??
@@beyondenfinity9748 LOL!
@@Diseaseisreversible Typical scary movie... sure, we all see danger looming, but the VICTIM is always unawares.
Lol..did the lighting guy fall!
I can’t wait until my persimmon brings fruiting. I just planted it this spring, so it’ll need another year or two to fruit. I hope you do a video on yours in another month or two when yours ripen.
This is my first time watching and my eyes are bugging out of my head. THIS GARDEN IS INCREDIBLE!
Beauty! Come visit us in Russia!
I love the opal basil. Very pretty color.
Yeah it's so stunning, definitely one of the more beautiful plants in the garden
I love watching and learning from you and Tuck! Just so refreshing! 🙂
I like what you said about learning what other countries do well at. Its so true. Why not benefit from the knowledge of things that other people have perfected?
In Zimbabwe it's called a " Magaka"
I like these. Gave some to my nephews and it is something fun and different.
I love your food forest method, what a dream backyard garden!
Thank you James! I was looking to see what African Horned Melon was like, now I know! I like to incorporate a lot of variety in my garden as well. It's always fun to try new things.
WOW....I live in Jersey too. My brother in Houston turned me on to you. Thanks Bro!
I grow lemon cucumbers here in Alaska and find they are sweet as sugar. They grow well here because they grow well in cooler weather.
A couple of thoughts: Let the Shiso go to seed and re-seed itself. Saves you buying new seed to plant it next year, saves you planting time next season. What it will spread randomly? That's a good thing, when your productive plants start taking over and there's no room for unwelcome weeds! On the horned melon - it may not be a good choice for a small planned garden where you need efficiency, but it also might be a good choice to put in a space you want to convert to garden from something else. Put that in, let it smother everything that's in the space, then cut it back and either put it in the compost pile or just leave it in place as mulch. Let it do a bunch of the preparation work on a new garden space.
I'm impressed that a little plant would grow so huge in such a short period of time.
Me too, but it kinda makes sense because it just spent all of its energy on the production of leaves instead of flowers, fruit, and seeds
@@jamesprigioni This is why I watch your channel! 😀 You know a lot about this stuff!
My Lemon cucumber did not do well this year Maybe Two small ones, and lots of vines My regular cukes and a Dragon Cucumber did GREAT. Made alot of Juice this year.
Tuck is really living the life, I've got to say. Vegetable treats, getting to dig around and explore... Happy puppy :)
And he looks super healthy! Such a sweet boy and discriminating gourmet 😻
I I love seeing your garden. It is inspiring and I always learn something beenificial.
Hey mate I’m in Port Stephens nsw and I had one horn melon plant come up in one of my raised beds I don’t know where it came from but I’ve used it in my jerky. And I also had it as a topping on ice cream and yogurt. I think it should be grown on a trellis it keep it up and easier to harvest. Any way I love your channel and give Tuk a pat from Australia.
first time to see a cucumber like that 3:38 . that puppy is cute
Nice PPE. 😂 Love how Tuck just goes foraging through the garden tearing fruit & veg off for his lunch. 😂👍
I love growing unusual plants now. Thanks for the warning on that cucumber.....I hate thorny plants. I'm having fun growing moringa trees and giving them away. I'm determined to turn my backyard into a food forest.😊
Sit the kiwano melons in the sun. Even after early harvesting. It tastes way better than cucumber when orange and yellow on the outside.
They are actually pretty good when ripe and have a really cool texture but unless you live somewhere with a lot of space and a very long season they aren’t the best idea.
Thanks for the tip I totally agree. Take care. Your great. ♥️♥️♥️
I pulled my one raspberry plant out because I couldn't even go near it without getting stuck to it. I need your raincoat to pass.by it. I am going to research some thornless ones. Hopefully they're just as sweet.
Ellen, Florida gardener
We grew some gourds one time that took over an area.
At one point we were growing birdhouse gourds because I liked cleaning them up, painting them and turning them into bird houses. Since we were growing gourds we tried different varieties. We have stopped growing gourds but one type has returned every year since. It has small round gourds and we always seem to miss at least one because they come back year after year.
Maybe next year I will be more vigilant and make sure I catch them before they get big enough to produce.
Oh my wooooord... we here in south Africa ... love wild cucumbers.... ESPECIALLY IN THE WINTER....WHEN IT IS RIPE!!!!!!!!
Good experiment glad you share the real.
Maybe you can use the left over seeds to grow for root stock to graft cucumber variaties on to🤔🙂.
I would love to see a "Tuck Approved 🐕" stamp on seed packets. ❤🐕🍅🍉
Ouch!! I will steer clear! Thanks mate👍
The raspberry leaves are excellent for tea. It has medicinal benefits.
I am a beekeeper and I never seen bees on it. this is why i was not going to grow shizo again. omg, yours does
You're right about plants like that. If I don't like something it won't be growing in my food forest. Another epic video. Thanks Jimbo!
We had our first frost in SE Connecticut this week. I lost most of my Zucchini and peppers took a beating. Lucky my green starts were already in. Huge harvest of salad greens tonight. Tomatoes still hanging in. I will try some of your Japanese and Italian suggestions in Spring.