OK, so we all know a big pile of grass will heat up in no time, right? And we know - or are at least told - that we are not supposed to plant melons until 2 weeks after the last frost. But who ever listens to that advise? Not I.

Anyway, the trailer I have for my lawn tractor was full of grass that I had collected the day before and I was headed out to the garden to mulch. First stop - the melons. Only becuase they happen to be at the farthest point in the garden. I stuck my hands into the trailer to grab a big armful and I was really surprised by the enormous amount of heat that was building up in there. Well, one thought led to another and I ended up building big doughnuts around the mellons. About 8" wide and 6 high, leaving a good 3-4 inches around the plants that are in the doughtnut hole.

I'm thinking, the grass is creating heat, melons love heat and as long as I keep the hot grass from touching the leaves, this should be a good thing, right?

Well, maybe. That's why I'm posting this on the experiments forum.

I figure if I check it every couple of days, turn it a bit so it doesn't turn to slime and maybe add a little bit here and there as it starts to shrink down I will be creating a heating effect that the melons should like.

Waddayathink?

Kay.