Picking Out a Good Watermelon--A True Challenge!

Picking out a good watermelon can be a crapshoot!  I bought one the other day that fit all the criteria to about 90%.  It was sooo good.  These photos, however, are NOT of that melon, but the closer you can meet the following criteria, the better chance you have of a good one with pleasing texture and flavor.  

SHAPE:  

• Is the melon misshapen or well formed

Exterior:  

• If it is a striped variety, are the stripes fairly evenly distributed? 

• Does the exterior have a fresh and firm appearance or a wrinkled state? 

• Are there any soft spots--avoid those. 

• You may find small spots of what looks like dried syrup which are called "sugar spots". Often a sign of sweetness, but not necessarily of flavor or texture.

• Minor blemishes and scratches do not generally affect the quality.

• Seedless varieties are often less flavorful.

• Yellow spots or a yellow tinge to the green can mean the melon stayed too long in the field and might be sunburned or that it is past the prime.  (You might find a slimey or grainy interior even if flavor and sweetness is good.)

THE "BELLY":  That portion of the watermelon that was on the ground and didn't get the sun. 

This pic should appear a little more yellow

• A good smooth and creamy yellow will be preferred to a very yellow.  Too much white or a green tinge will often prove an melon that hasn't developed it's sweetness or color.  In the picture (which doesn't show the degree of yellowness that was there) the blemishes aren't that important. Though there could be some yellowing and brown spotting in the interior white section of the rind, doesn't usually affect the flavor too much.

WEIGHT: 

• A melon should feel heavier than it looks. You are looking for weight due to "water weight".  More weight, all other things considered, should be nice and juicy.

 THE WATERMELON "TAP", "PAT", OR "THUMP": 

• You may have seen crazy people (like me) patting or thumping melons.  This takes practice. You are feeling and listening for a reverberation and a heavy sound.  If the flesh is firm and the juice is full, there is a peculiarly distinct feel and sound.  When you can identify that (all other considerations being good) when you cut into the melon it will often split on it's own.  THAT is very often a GOOD sign. 

 I knew when I bought the watermelon pictured here that the reverberation did not match what I wanted, but was the only one I could find that was near what I wanted.  I also noted that it was a bit too "yellow", but all the melons were like this or worse. It did have a good shape, good weight, and a fresh "skin" with evenly distributed stripes. 

Hopefully, this will help you pick out a good melon.  Also, a good judgement of what will be inside a melon is to have a look at some of the pre-cut melons.  If they all seem to be mushy, grainy, or not red enough...that is probably what yours will look like too. 

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Squash Bug An Organic "Control"?

A starter kit for capturing the Squash Bugs

I went to water the acorn squash bed and found my plants faltering one morning.  I thought at first that our dramatic heat was taking a toll.  I watered a little extra and didn't think about it. My husband watered the next couple of days, and I hadn't checked on them, nor had I thought to ask about them. (Out of sight--out of mind, I guess)

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The next morning I took my turn at watering and (to my horror) I saw the plants looking as if they were dying.  A closer examination and I found all kinds of creepy creatures all over the leaves, especially the underside of the leaf. 

The bodies actually appear "bluish", though the camera picked it up as green

I cannot tolerate most insecticides and I value organic gardening and farming, so I knew chemical bug control was out.  I had heard that often gardeners will just pull up their plants and bag and throw the plants away, or if locally legal, they consume them on a big fire.  I didn't want to throw the towel in without a fight.  I grabbed my Smart Phone and read quite a few articles about the problem and watched a few video remedies.  Not much help there, though I did see two amusing things to try.  Duct Tape and a small hand vac.  My only small vac operates in the car, so that option was out for the moment. (Although, it actually seems like a viable thing to try...if it doesn't make you feel too foolish to vacuum plants in front of the neighbors!)

Although most people who tried Castile soap and water in a spray bottle said that their mixtures almost always stopped the pests in their tracks, my trial with that ended in failure.  Some substituted Palmolive or Dawn dish soap, but not sure that is "organic", though a better choice (to me) than insecticides.  That left the "hand pick the adults and cut away the portion of the leaf with the eggs on them" remedy...and the duct tape.  Since I had hands, and a knife, and duct tape and a little time...I thought I would give it a whirl.

use a small knife to cut out only the portion of the leaf affected with eggs

 

eggs may vary in color and shape

To my happy surprise, it was quite easy to capture a whole batch of small squash bugs with one press against them.  You can also press the duct tape against an egg clutch, but you tear the leaf.  Cutting those out with a knife seemed to harm the plant less. The adult (creepy looking stink bugs) can be knocked into a cup of soapy water, using brave fingers or edge of the knife.  I didn't have any of them escape the soapy water. (I used Palmolive, don't believe it really makes a difference for that.)         

Just knocking the adults into the soapy water killed them quickly

This won't be an overnight cure, and I'm not sure it is a cure.  I will certainly have to keep up with this every day for a while.  The adults were hiding at the base of the plants and hard to get to without harming the plant itself.

throw away or burn the waste

Clean out old leaves and the pieces of leaves with the eggs on them, along with the pieces of duct tape and all the "buggy" stuff.  Place it in the trash.  I used an old coffee can to put the debris in...make sure you put the lid on.  I may  have to eventually give up a battle hard won, but I am not bested yet. 

Keeping the acorn squash "safe" might also protect the yellow crookneck squash in another bed, as well as, the muskmelons and the tomatoes.  There is no infestation there at this point.  When planting, though, next year I intend to do further research on this problem, and try more companion planting.  Some suggest that nasturtiums, petunias, garlic, radishes, and marigolds may be helpful to deter the little pests.  Though, nothing is foolproof and the exact variation of the pest could make a difference too.

Save the yellow squash!

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