The heyday is long gone. The purple striped fruits grow happily in front of you. But we are impatiently waiting for a ripe specimen to finally taste its aromatic pulp. But when is it finally time? How to recognize the signs of maturity.

A ripe pepino smells deliciously sweet

Find the perfect time

When harvesting the melon pear, only those fruits should be picked that have reached the optimum degree of ripeness. Then they taste particularly aromatic and are equipped with the right portion of sweetness.

Once the optimal degree of ripeness has been reached, you should also pick a melon fruit promptly, because it quickly loses quality. Its pulp becomes soft and it can even begin to rot on the plant.

Heat as a factor in fruit set

But when does the melon pear actually bear fruit? It is not enough for a plant to open many flower buds. It also has to come to fruition. The pepino, as the melon pear is also called, can pollinate itself. However, fruits only develop from it if the temperature remains constantly above 18 °C for many nights at this time.

Late harvest time is typical for the melon pear

After flowering in spring and successful pollination, it still takes many weeks before the first edible fruits hang on the bush. Sometime in late summer the time has come. Depending on the current weather, sometimes a little earlier and sometimes a little later. That is why it is important to follow the signs of maturity.

tips

We recommend that you pinch out all flowerless side shoots at an early stage so that the energy saved can be used to develop the fruit. You get larger fruits if you shorten the long flowering shoots.

This is how you recognize a ripe Pepino

A "ready" fruit takes about 90 days to grow. Depending on the variety, it can grow up to 20 cm long and weigh 300 grams. But you shouldn't go by these characteristics alone. Here are the reliable ripening traits:

  • the Pepino exudes a sweet scent
  • the coloring has changed
  • the fruit yields slightly under pressure

The proof of the pudding is in the studying! If the flesh tastes like pear and honeydew melon, the degree of ripeness is ideal.

Leave to ripen in the winter quarters

If the care is right but the weather is not, the ripening of some fruits can be delayed. Since the melon pear is not hardy, it needs to be wintered indoors early in the fall. What to do with the unripe fruit still attached?

Leave the fruit on the plant. These can also ripen in bright winter quarters at 5-10 °C. If this is not possible for reasons of space, you can harvest the unripe fruits and let them ripen within a few days at room temperature. It's quicker if a few apples are deposited near them.

Use and storage of ripe fruit

Even a single melon pear can yield many fruits in good years. They taste delicious pure, but also in sweet and salty dishes. Fruits that cannot be consumed soon can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 weeks.

Category:

Vegetable garden