This kit is designed to be grown outside on your patio where your herbs will thrive in fresh air and natural sunlight. Position your planter where it will get at least 5 hours of sun per day — a east facing spot is ideal for Phoenix.

When temperatures are forecast to exceed 108°F bring your planter inside and place it on a south-facing window to protect your herbs from the extreme heat. Once temperatures drop back to a comfortable range move them back outside.

Use the hand trowel from your kit to fill the planter with your personalized soil mix, leaving about two inches of space at the top.

The soil in this kit has been specially formulated to give your herbs the perfect foundation — it has the right balance of nutrients, drainage, and moisture retention to support healthy growth in our desert climate.

Each herb has slightly different planting needs — here is exactly what to do for each one.

Before you start, divide your planter into 3 equal sections — one for each herb. Use your plant labels to mark each section so you always know what is growing where.

BASIL - Plant seeds ¼ inch deep and about 3 inches apart. Basil germinates quickly in warm soil — expect seedlings in 5–7 days.

OREGANO - Sprinkle seeds on the surface and press gently into the soil — oregano seeds need light to start to grow so do not cover them deeply. Expect seedlings in 7–12 days.

ROSEMARY - Plant seeds ¼ inch deep. Rosemary is the slowest of the three to grow — be patient and expect seedlings in 12–18 days.

Give your seeds their first watering using the watering can included in your kit. Water gently and evenly across the entire planter — you want the soil to be moist but not waterlogged.

Continue to water gently every day for the next 4 to 5 days — this consistent moisture is essential for encouraging your seeds to wake up and sprout.

Keep the soil consistently moist — not wet — until seedlings appear

Once Seedlings Appear - Water when the top inch of soil feels dry to the touch. Herbs prefer to dry out slightly between waterings. When in doubt, underwater rather than overwater — the most common mistake with herbs is overwatering.

Place your planter where it gets morning sun and afternoon shade — especially important in summer.

A covered patio or spot that gets shade after 1pm is ideal. Avoid placing the planter on surfaces that absorb and radiate heat like concrete or dark metal railings as this can overheat the roots.

RECOMMENDED SOIL MIX
For best results, use a blend of potting soil (or garden soil), compost, and an aeration material. The potting soil provides a nutrient-rich base, the compost feeds the plant and helps retain moisture, and the aeration keeps roots from sitting wet.

Ideal mix:
• 50% potting soil or garden soil
• 30% compost
• 20% coarse sand, pumice, or perlite

This creates loose, well-draining soil that still holds enough moisture for watermelon roots. If planting in native soil, you can also use the method from Dave Owens in Extreme Gardening — dig a 1' x 1' hole and fill it with this mix to create a rich planting pocket.

MULCH
A light layer of mulch around the base is recommended to retain moisture and keep soil temperatures from getting too extreme. Keep mulch pulled back slightly from the main stem (about 1–2 inches) to prevent rot.

Good neighbors: sunflowers, and marigolds, — they will attract beneficial pollinators.

Bad neighbor: cucumbers, squash, pumpkins — planting too close together encourages shared pests and diseases.

Let your Sugar Baby watermelon do what comes naturally — spread out on the ground with room to roam. No trellis needed.

If you prefer to grow vertically, you will need to create a sling for each fruit using old pantyhose or a mesh bag tied to the trellis — without it the weight of the fruit will pull it off the vine before it's ripe.

Male flowers appear first — don't be alarmed when the first flowers don't set fruit. Male flowers show up a week before female flowers and that's completely normal.

Female flowers have a tiny baby watermelon at the base — once you see those and bees start visiting, fruit will begin to set and develop.

Pollinators are essential — watermelons need bees to transfer pollen from male to female flowers. Planting flowers nearby to attract bees and beneficial pollinators will significantly improve your fruit set.

Sugar Baby watermelons are ready in 75–80 days from transplanting — planting in April puts your harvest right around late June to early July.

Check the tendril nearest the fruit — when it turns brown and dries out, the watermelon is ripe and ready to pick. This is the most reliable indicator. Not sure what to look for? Head over to our Instagram @desertharvest_az and look for our video 'When to harvest watermelon' — it walks you through how to check the tendril step by step so you can harvest with confidence.

Look for a yellow ground spot — the patch where the watermelon rests on the soil should turn from white to a creamy yellow when ripe.

Give it a tap — a ripe watermelon produces a deep, hollow thud rather than a high-pitched ping. It takes a little practice but becomes second nature quickly.

Cut the fruit from the vine with a sharp knife — never pull or twist as this can damage the vine and any remaining developing fruit.