Melon 'F1 Galia'

Melon F1 Galia as the name suggests, is a Galia type that produces very uniform globe-shaped fruit with a small cavity. This luscious variety has skin that is netted with gold and firm flesh with good flavour. The flesh is the cool-green of a glacial lake.

Melon Galia is an F1 variety. It has been specially bred for maximum vigour and uniform growth and performs reliably despite cooler summers. It is very vigorous with fruit maturing early and in rapid succession. Resistant to Fusarium and Powdery Mildew, you can even grow it in humid or rainy climates without worry. The vines yield fruit with a typical size of 0.8 to 1.2kg. Around 5 to 8 fruits per plant can be expected. 65 to 70 days to maturity.

F1 Galia fruits have a spicy-sweet aroma, with a flavour more like a cantaloupe than honeydew, although with a complexity of their own. Serve with prosciutto or parma ham as antipasto. Or at meal’s end, with bunches of fat purple grapes and tangerines. Once picked it has good storage ability in the fridge. You will appreciate its unique texture and taste.

Growing Melons:
In general, melons are lovers of warmth, which makes them short season crops for the temperate areas, whereas in warm countries they are grown in succession for export to temperate zones. They typically grow best under glass, but can be grown outdoors in warmer regions. They can be grown in grow bags in a glasshouse or in a poly tunnel. They can be outdoors in well prepared ground with lots of organic matter in the soil. (Composted grass clippings and straw are ideal.). Plants can be trained vertically or, if space is not a problem, can be left to sprawl along the ground.

Melons prefer is diffuse light rather than bright light. The soil should be rich and well drained, and like the atmosphere around them, kept continually moist.
They need higher temperatures than tomatoes and high humidity but will grow well with cucumbers which require similar conditions. Contrary to popular belief, you can grow melons alongside cucumbers; they are similar, but will not cross-pollinate each other

Sowing: Sow from March to the end of May
Melon seeds are sown from late winter to spring in hotter countries, but in our temperate zone sow indoors from March to the end of May. Sow 1cm (½in) deep directly into 8 to 10cm (3 to 4in) pots using standard free draining potting compost. Keep moist at all time. Seeds will germinate at temperatures above 21°C (68°F). Germination usually takes 6 to 10 days at 24°C (75°F).
Transplant when large enough to handle into 13cm (5in) pots. Grow on in good light at around 15 to 18°C (59 to 64) before planting 75 to 100cm (30 to 39in) apart when all risk of frost has passed. Planting into an unheated glasshouse or polytunnel must not take place until the compost or soil is sufficiently warm (18°C / 64°F ) and the air temperature likewise. Set the plants out firmly but do not compact the soil.
The planting area must be adjacent to suitable support if the melons are to be trained in conventional fashion. When planting, you may wish to inserting a 7cm (3in) pipe into the soil so you can water directly to the roots with a watering can.
Top dress with good compost when white roots are seen. If the basal leaves begin to yellow feed with a liquid tomato fertiliser. Feed weekly once the fruits begin to form.

Training:
Melons can be trained up a simple single line of string tied to the supports in the glasshouse roof and secured in the ground with a peg next to the base of the melon or use a fan trellis which is simple and reusable next season.
As the melon starts to grow, tie the strongest shoot to the support and pinch out the side shoots which grow from the main stem. As the plants grow pinch out each stem a couple of leaves beyond the female flowers.
Once the stem has reached the top of the support pinch out the leading shoot. This will make the plant concentrate on the formation of fruits. Sprawling plants are simply left to develop and restricted to avoid growth congestion as required.

Watering:
Watering holds the key to successful melon growing. Regular watering is essential, try to keep the compost constantly moist but not wet. You need to water so that the plant never gets wet, avoid sogginess around the plant stem as this can cause stem rot. Over watering can cause the fruit to split. Possibly the best way to water is with a drip irrigation system.
Glasshouse conditions in high summer need to be kept humid on the hottest days by watering the path early in the morning or by standing a bucket of water in the glasshouse.
Melons need sufficient moisture while growing and fruiting, but prior to harvest, the best, sweetest flavour will occur if the plant is grown on the "dry" side. Cut back on watering the plant when you approach harvest, about three weeks prior to the main crop harvest.

Pollination:
Once the flowers have formed, you will need to pollinate the flowers. This is best carried out mid day when the humidity is high. Females have a swollen part at the base of the bloom. Either remove a male flower and place it inside a female bloom, or take a small paintbrush and lightly brush each flower in turn to. After 2 or 3 days remove the male flowers from the plants.

Support:
As soon as the fruits reach the size of tennis balls you need to use string nets or other means to support them. For sprawling plants, a layer of straw should be put down to prevent fruit damage. As the summer progresses and the fruits reach full size remove a few leaves to allow the fruit to ripen.

Harvest: July to August. 65 to 70 days to maturity
The skin of a ripe Galia melon will be a good shade of yellow and will give off a good melon fragrance from the stem end. Check the melon is a good size and weight for its size, and if you\'re really lucky, the melon will easily come off the stem, another sign that it\'s ripe and ready for eating.
Melons will ripen when taken off the plant (provided they are mature enough when picked), and can be ripened in a fruit bowl with bananas.

Nomenclature:
Melon is from Medieval Latin melonem, from Latin melopeponem meaning “a type of pumpkin”.
Developed in Israel around 1970 by the melon breeder Zvi Karchi, The name Galia is the feminine form of the Israeli name Gal meaning 'wave'.
The Galia is a type of hybrid melon originating from a cantaloupe-honeydew cross. It looks like a cantaloupe on the outside and a honeydew on the inside. Rounded in shape and a little larger than a cantaloupe.
Galia melons are easy to grow and can be grown anywhere other melons can. They are now grown commercially in Brazil, Spain, Southern U.S. regions, Costa Rica, Panama, and Egypt.