NEARLY 90% WATER, WATERMELONS ARE ALSO FILLED WITH BOUNTIFUL FLAVOR AND NUTRITION.

BY KENNY COOGAN

Desert King watermelons are known for being heat-resistant and somewhat drought-tolerant.

A ripe melon should be firm, symmetrical in shape and of good color.

TCHARA/SHUTTERSTOCK

For at least 5,000 years, the watermelon has been transforming from a bitter fruit with hard, pale-green flesh into the omnipresent picnic-table companion. Originating from Northeast Africa, watermelon paintings can be seen on various Egyptian tombs. One illustration shows an oblong watermelon, which is different than the wild type (Citrullus lanatus var. Colocynthoides). This indicates the ancient Egyptians were selective breeding them.

Initially, people were eating the seeds and discarding the flesh. Acting as a natural canteen, they could store them for weeks to months, unlike other fruits, and extract the water. Deceased pharaohs had watermelons placed in their tombs to help them mollify their thirst on the long journey to the afterlife. Eventually, farmers would start cultivating watermelons for taste in addition to the ability to save water.

By A.D. 300, watermelons were sweet enough to make it on the dessert menu. The gene for the sugar content is paired with the red color in watermelons. Around this time, the melon’s color was intensifying from yellow to the colors we recognize today.

GET GROWIN’

A few years ago, I was running out of room in my raised-bed vegetable gardens for space hogs, such as watermelons and squashes. So I took to my front yard. In the center of my grass lawn, I created a miniature hill of compost. I planted a half dozen watermelon seeds and thinned them to three plants. The vines rambled all over my sloping yard. It was beautiful.