Can't address melons as all I grow are watermelons but I'm always surprised when folks expect their cuke plants to last all season. Maybe it's possible up north in the cooler zones but it could never happen in my climate. If no pests or disease the heat still does them in by mid-season. Part of it I suspect is due to the nature of heavily vining plants and their compromised circulatory system. Subsequent planting is the only thing that works for me as the younger, more compact plants cope with the heat much better.

JME

Dave

Thanks, Dave. Very different than solonaceae, brassicas, and leafy greens, which can just keep going and going. They are stunted a bit by intense heat, but once that's over, and if they survive that intense heat, they get a second wind. To some extent, these plants can at least go into a second season. Especially if you keep them from bolting. I have collards that are moving into their third season, and you can certainly have indeterminate tomatoes as perennials. But cucurbits seem to have a built-in timer that shuts them off after a few months.