What it is
Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is in the Cucurbitaceae (Gourd) family. A true heat crop that loves a long Texas summer. Sandy soil and warmth give the sweetest melons.
How to grow it
It wants full sun, water it even early, drier as it ripens, and give it sandy, warm soil. Target a soil pH around 6.0–6.8. Space plants about 3–4 ft apart. Expect roughly 70–90. Warm-season annual.
How it's used
Watermelon is used: fresh; rind picklable.
🔎 How to identify it
- Deeply lobed gray-green leaves
- Sprawling vines with tendrils
- Tendril near stem dries when ripe
Edibility
PartsFlesh and rind
UsesFresh; rind picklable
CautionNone.
🌤 Before you plant: check the live 7-day garden weather to time it right for frost and heat.
Part of the free Texas Roots plant database, compiled by Jordan Polasek from his greenhouse in El Campo, Texas. Free to read and share. If it helped, the best thanks is to grow something.