Honduras has delayed melon planting in the southern region of the country due to torrential rain, website Elheraldo.hn reported.

Heavy downpours have destroyed nearly three months of preparatory work in the melon growing heartlands of Choluteca and Valle.

Producers were to have begun planting 6,000 acres of cantaloupe, honeydew, galia, charentais and toad skins for the first 90-day cycle this week with harvesting, packaging and export scheduled for early December, the story reported.

Growers are hoping river levels in the country's melon growing areas will drop within the next few days so planting can start soon.

An engineer working for a major producer told the website if laborers could be employed to work round the clock then it would be possible to plant the first cycle within 15 days making up for the lost time.

Melons are one of Honduras' major exports generating US$52.8 million in foreign exchange with the U.S., Belgium, France, Spain, Italy and Germany its major markets.

Related story: Latin American melon farmers could suffer from U.S. disease scare

Photo: Taringa.net

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