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I'm just not finding them with seeds anymore. Do you think they have more flavor?
I buy mostly seedless. I just ate a slice. They're wet and refreshing, all I expect from a watermelon. My main complaint is some are too hard. The flesh is too hard. But that's better than a slightly over ripe seeded with soft mealy flesh.I've grown a lot of varieties both seeded and seedless. The best of those, Star Brite, is seeded. It has large seeds and not too many. I'd much prefer seedless over seeded with what seems like thousands of small seeds, such as Sugar Baby. I'd much prefer seedless over any seeded that's over ripe. Seedless has a longer shelf life, a primary reason they dominate retail trade.
Seeded. Do you also have the impression that even the seeded one got worse these days? Is it because farmers go for varieties with longer shelf life?
I've yet to eat a really good seedless watermelon. Although i have to say that most of the seeded ones, though better, are not top of the line either. But i'm kind of a watermelon snob because i used to grow watermelons commercially. Unfortunately the watermelons that have taken over the main markets tend to be the worst of the lot, and are only favored because they have thick rinds that transport well without cracking. The situation is similar to Tommy Atkins becoming most popular commercial mango grown. To eat really excellent watermelons you have to go to an area where they are locally grown and eat ones that are not selected for international trade.
Seeded have better flavor by far. Seedless are not really seedless, the seeds are just softer AND harder to remove. When you bite into them it changes the flavor. I don't like the cucumber like flavor notes the seeds add to a watermelon. Most of us have been cutting watermelons wrong our whole lives. If you cut a seeded watermelon properly, it can essentially be seedless. 1. Lay the watermelon on its side and cut off the ends. 2. Cut remainder of watermelon into 2-4 thick slices shaped like a round cake that will pretty much fill up a plate. 3 Cut thin wedges downwards radiating out from the middle about 1/2 to 2/3 inch thick as if you were cutting a round cake. The knife will do most of the seeding as you cut, the majority of the rest will be exposed on the edges of the slice and can be removed just by rubbing the knife along the sides of the cut wedge. Adjust thickness of wedges based on size of watermelon to get uniformly seedless slices. I get the better flavor and ability to take big bites out of a seedless but thin wedge of fruit.
Quote from: fruitlovers on June 08, 2021, 10:17:24 PMI've yet to eat a really good seedless watermelon. Although i have to say that most of the seeded ones, though better, are not top of the line either. But i'm kind of a watermelon snob because i used to grow watermelons commercially. Unfortunately the watermelons that have taken over the main markets tend to be the worst of the lot, and are only favored because they have thick rinds that transport well without cracking. The situation is similar to Tommy Atkins becoming most popular commercial mango grown. To eat really excellent watermelons you have to go to an area where they are locally grown and eat ones that are not selected for international trade.whats your top few favorite varieties?By the way, Im surprised people are debating the merits of seesless vs seeded etc from walmart or costco on a fruit forum. Of course they are no good. You need to grow your own for good ones.
i put in some new avocado trees last year and top worked them this spring. Then popped water melon plants nearby to leverage the irrigation while the trees are small. It works well and the melons can be rotated around the orchard this way so the fungus from prior melon grows doesnt infect the new plants. Ive got about 20 of these like this on 18ft spacing. The hillside will be full of melons soon!
thanks Oscar. Im growing a bunch of orangeglos and planted a few moon and stars for the first time this year. Orangeglo is the king.
Partly OT . . . .Why not try growing watermelons on a sturdy trellis? That would keep the vines and developing fruit off the ground and mostly isolate the vines from soil-borne pathogens. The vines have tendrils for climbing after all, so why not give them the chance to climb?I once saw watermelons growing hanging from an orange tree in a garden in rural Guatemala. It was kinda startling to see three or four big melons hanging from that orange tree. But in a small scale garden the fruit could be protected from falling to the ground by a cradle/net 'til ready to harvest.And anyway, having seen that arrangement in Guatemala gave me the sense that that is part of the melon's natural strategy for distributing its seeds... Once the fruit is ripe and falls to the ground it breaks open and the interior invites being eaten along with the seeds which are then later distributed in the droppings of the creatures that ate the fallen fruit.This could be tried with any tendrilled melon. (Or maybe someone on here is growing melons this way already.)Paul M.==
Quote from: spaugh on June 09, 2021, 11:36:42 PMthanks Oscar. Im growing a bunch of orangeglos and planted a few moon and stars for the first time this year. Orangeglo is the king.How do yo avoid powder mildew? Many years ago I grew couple vines and they were so good, but then no more luck after that due to very bad PM problem.
Quote from: spaugh on June 08, 2021, 11:50:42 PMQuote from: fruitlovers on June 08, 2021, 10:17:24 PMI've yet to eat a really good seedless watermelon. Although i have to say that most of the seeded ones, though better, are not top of the line either. But i'm kind of a watermelon snob because i used to grow watermelons commercially. Unfortunately the watermelons that have taken over the main markets tend to be the worst of the lot, and are only favored because they have thick rinds that transport well without cracking. The situation is similar to Tommy Atkins becoming most popular commercial mango grown. To eat really excellent watermelons you have to go to an area where they are locally grown and eat ones that are not selected for international trade.whats your top few favorite varieties?By the way, Im surprised people are debating the merits of seesless vs seeded etc from walmart or costco on a fruit forum. Of course they are no good. You need to grow your own for good ones. Yes you are right. It's pretty sad that fruit enthusiasts go to Walmart and Costco to attempt to get good quality fruits of any kind. The days when you could drive to a family run farm's watermelon fruit stand are mostly gone for a majority of the population. Still there are a few family farms that deliver to weekend farmer's markets if you make the extra effort to go to those.
Would you consider eating lots of watermelon a good way to stay hydrated in the summer? It has nutrients. I wouldn't think the sugar content would be harmful--not like drinking Coke!
Oscar what kind of fertilizers are best for watermelon?