Are you a person with green fingers?

If you're not, but still want some inspiration on growing your own greens with a modicum of success, look no further than an urban gardener in Singapore who managed to grow a decent-sized rock melon — along his Housing and Development Board (HDB) corridor.

Details of harvest

Muhd Irwanshah shared a post on Jul. 20 detailing how he managed to grow a 1.22kg Japanese melon at home, which tasted "mildly sweet".

According to his post, which was accompanied by more than a dozen photos detailing the growth of his fruit, the rock melon was planted in a rectangular planter box with the aid of a face mask to support the fruit's weight.

"It was grown without the aid of sunlight," the gardener wrote.

"Just bright indirect sunlight so the melon tasted mildly sweet as the end result. Nevertheless would try again."

To get the melon to taste sweeter, the gardener said he refrained from watering it as the fruit was beginning to ripen: "Purposely withdraw from watering at the last stage in an effort to make the melon more sweeter."

Attention to details + technical knowledge

The post attracted significant interest from other group members who posed questions about how the urban gardener went about doing it.

Based on his replies, the rock melon apparently did not come easy.

For starters, he used Baba brand "Melon Gorgeous" seeds, which he bought.

In a comment, he further explained the mechanics of the cultivation: "This 'Gorgeous Melon' seed packet is an F1 hybrid. Meaning if I were to use the seeds that I got from this melon again, that seed will either turn out to be a melon with different characteristics or a sterile seed that will never sprout."

It is apparent that using the seeds bought off the shelf would be the first step to having a better chance at cultivating a fruit.

In response to a query about what to do when the "female flowers just dropped without even opening", it was explained that this is a normal process.

According to Irwanshah, only five female buds out of a dozen opened for his case.

As a suggestion, he wrote: "Perhaps try to increase flowering-focused fertiliser for better development?"

When asked about fertiliser, it was suggested that Bio-Plus granules are used in the initial stages.

This was followed by bone meal, a mineral supplement, to be used together with the Bio-Plus granules.

After that, it was suggested that flowering and fruiting fertilisers from Far East Flora are used generously along with Bio-Plus granules once every two to three weeks when buds start to appear.

Jacko Liquid Gold, to fight plant root pathogens, as well as HB-101, a plant vitaliser, and Horti seaweed fertiliser, are also used to condition the soil once a week.

To top it off, calcium nitrate is used during the fruiting stage to prevent blossom end rot, while egg shells scattered on the surface of the soil serve as a means of mulching.

All photos via Muhd Irwanshah