Container watermelons!

[GreenThumbGal_07]

I decided to grow watermelons this year (Sunset Zone 17 -- good luck with that) but think that in the relatively sunny East SF Bay Area I might have a bit of luck with a variety that doesn't take several months to mature.

The Sugar Baby seeds from 2003 didn't germinate outdoors. I tried starting them indoors in Dixie cups (no luck, is the freshness limit 4 years?) and no luck with the Burpee "packed for 2020" Bush Sugar Baby watermelons either.

In a fit of despair, I bought some nursery watermelon starts (Sangria) that looked pretty sickly and poor. Those went into the 7-gallon Gro-Bag pot, along with layered fresh potting soil (E.B. Stone's Edna's Best, Black Magic) and organic fertilizer. And... a few Jobe's Tomato Spikes for good measure.

The grocery store seed rack (Burpee) had the Bush Sugar Baby variety that didn't work. I bought Crimson Sweet from the same source ("packed for 2020") and planted all of the seeds I had (13 of Bush Sugar Baby, the full 62-seed packet of Crimson Sweet). I figured maybe I'd get a few plants if I was lucky.

Wouldn't you know it: in the warm sun, everything started sprouting. (A little Dixie cup on a cold windowsill is no match for good dirt in the sunshine.)

So now comes the hard decision. A 7-gallon pot should support maybe 2 watermelon vines, not three.

Which two of these three varieties would you choose?

(And if I'm having any luck at all this year with watermelons, I will try Sugar Baby next year!)

Thanks.

GTG