Watermelon

Where does Watermelon grow?

Found in: Africa, Amazon, Angola, Argentina, Aruba, Asia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Benin, Bolivia, Botswana, Bougainville, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabinda, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Caucasus, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Central America, Chad, China, Congo DR, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Dominican Republic, East Africa, East Timor, Easter Island, Ecuador, Egypt, Equatorial-Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, FSM, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guam, Guiana, Guianas, Guinea, Guinée, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Hawaii, Himalayas, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Kiribati, Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marquesas, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mediterranean, Mexico, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North Africa, North America, Northeastern India, Pacific, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Pohnpei, Puerto Rico, Rotuma, Russia, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, SE Asia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Southern Africa, South America, South Sudan, Spain, Sri Lanka, St. Vincent and Grenadines, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Switzerland, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tokelau, Tonga, Tunisia, Turkey, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United States, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, West Africa, West Indies, Yugoslavia, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Notes: There are 3 Citrullus species. The fruit are mostly water with little food value or taste. Some kinds are being selected for seeds for oil. The seed oil is nutritious.

Status: It is a commercially cultivated vegetable. The seeds are a popular food in China. Common and popular in lowland areas of Papua New Guinea.

Growing Watermelon

Cultivation: Plants are grown from seed. They are suitable mainly for the dry season. A spacing of 1.5 to 2 m is suitable. They grow easily from seed. They do best when fully exposed to the sun. Seed can be dried and stored. If too much vegetative growth occurs picking out the tip to produce side branches with more fruit.

Edible Uses: The fruit is eaten raw when ripe. Small unripe fruit can be cooked as a vegetable. Seeds are also eaten. They are dried, soaked in salt water then roasted. Oil is extracted from the seeds. The seeds are ground and made into bread. Occasionally very young leaves are eaten. The skin is sometimes candied in vinegar then eaten with fish. The syrup from the fruit can be used in jams and cakes.

Production: Plants grow quickly. Harvesting commences after 4-5 months. The main fruit season is November to January. The ripeness can be picked by tapping the fruit to get a dull sound, the part of the fruit on the ground changes from green to light yellow and the tendril near the base of the fruit becomes dry. Fruit yield can be 45-60 tons per hectare. There can be 4-6 fruit on each plant.

Nutrition Info

Watermelon Photos

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