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Aug 12, 2020 10:14 AM CST
Thread OP
Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Over the last few weeks I've started to notice that 2 of my 12 cantaloupe plants have started looking unhealthy with no obvious cause. I'm worried about bacterial wilt and hoping you all could have a look at the pictures (and the details below) and weigh in. I've attached pictures of the healthiest plants for reference, along with two pics of the problematic plants.

I've been following the same watering/fertilizing routine since initially planting which has kept the plants looking healthy and actively producing - I've had no issues up until noticing the 2 plants that started to look rough. Since my watering routine has been consistent and the other 10 plants look healthy, I'm leaning away from over/under watering but the only other thing I could think of is bacterial wilt, but I can't know for sure so hoping you all can help!

The one plant that looks the worst, pictured below, is the one that grew fastest and fullest, not sure if that's a coincidence or maybe it attracted a pest that's causing this? This was also the first plant that yielded fully ripe melons, the first of which I picked about a week ago


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Aug 13, 2020 12:47 AM CST

To check if you have bacterial wilt, cut the end of a wilted vine, put your finger against the cut and slowly pull it away. If strands resembling glue form, you have bacterial wilt.
There's no chemical control for bacterial wilt and the only way to stop it from spreading is to eliminate the vectors, meaning cucumber beetles. The best way to do is by using traps. They aren't cheap (1 trap + 1 lure is about $10 unless you buy in bulk) but they work well and don't affect other insects.

On the other side if bacterial wilt is not present you are probbaly dealing with heat stress, but even during a heat wave I doubt the weather in Cape Cod gets so unbearably hot to affect cantelopes.
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