Mouse Melon - Mexican Sour Gherkin

Mouse Melon is a tiny cucumber that looks like like a doll-sized watermelon. This long-lost heirloom was grown by the Incas and has only recently been rediscovered. It's easy to grow, highly productive, and great fun to eat.

Mouse Melons have a sweet cucumber flavor with a tangy, citrus twist. They make crunchy snacks, add color and zip to salads, are great for pickling. Kids love them.

The pretty vines have tiny leaves and flowers, charming in a flower garden or trail from a hanging basket. They produce generous yields. If you grow for Farmers Markets, this is a sure hit.

Germination:

Thoroughly moisten your seed-starting mix, and then fill your pots/containers to within 1/2" of the top.

Place two or three seeds into each small container or each cell of a seed starter. Cover the seed with about 1/4" of soil.

Water to ensure good seed-to-mix contact. You can use a plant mister or just dribble a stream of water over the top. You don't need to soak the soil, just moisten the top layer.
(You don't want to heavily water and "push" seeds to deep that they can't germinate.)

Keep the mix moist but not soaking wet. Lay some plastic kitchen wrap and a rubber band over pots to keep in heat and moisture.

Place the pots in a warm, sunny spot or on top of a heat mat. (Seeds won't germinate until the soil itself is 75-80 degrees.)

Check pots daily. As soon as you see sprouts, remove the covering and place the pots in a sunny window or under grow lights, keeping the lights just an inch or two above the tops of the plants.

15 seeds.