Watermelon

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For other uses, see Watermelon (disambiguation).

Watermelon

Watermelon

Watermelon cross section

Scientific classification

Kingdom: Plantae

(unranked): Angiosperms
 (unranked): Eudicots

(unranked): Rosids

Order: Cucurbitales

Family: Cucurbitaceae

Genus: Citrullus

Species: C.  lanatus

Variety: lanatus

Trinomial name

Citrullus lanatus var. lanatus
(Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai

Watermelon output in 2005

Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus var. lanatus, family Cucurbitaceae) is a vine-like (scrambler and

trailer) flowering plant originally from southern Africa. It is a large, sprawling annual plant with
coarse, hairy pinnately-lobed leaves and white to yellow flowers. It is grown for its edible fruit,
also known as a watermelon, which is a special kind of berry botanically called a pepo. The fruit
has a smooth hard rind, usually green with dark green stripes or yellow spots, and a juicy, sweet
interior flesh, usually deep red to pink, but sometimes orange, yellow, or white, with many seeds.
Considerable breeding effort has been put into disease-resistant varieties and into developing a
seedless strain. Many cultivars are available, producing mature fruit within 100 days of planting
the crop. The fruit can be eaten raw or cooked.

Contents
  [hide] 

 1History
 2Description
 3Variety improvement
 4Cultivation
 5Varieties
 6Uses
o 6.1Nutrients
o 6.2Food
 7Gallery
 8References
 9External links

History

Watermelon, 17th century, byGiovanni Stanchi

The watermelon is thought to have originated in southern Africa, where it is found growing wild. It
reaches maximum genetic diversity there, with sweet, bland and bitter forms. In the 19th
century, Alphonse de Candolle[1] considered the watermelon to be indigenous to tropical Africa.
[2]
 Citrullus colocynthis is often considered to be a wild ancestor of the watermelon and is now
found native in north and west Africa. However, it has been suggested on the basis of chloroplast
DNA investigations, that the cultivated and wild watermelon diverged independently from a
common ancestor, possibly C. ecirrhosus from Namibia.[3]
Evidence of its cultivation in the Nile Valley has been found from the second millennium
BC onward. Watermelon seeds have been found at Twelfth Dynasty sites and in the tomb
of Pharaoh Tutankhamun.[4]
In the 7th century, watermelons were being cultivated in India and by the 10th century had
reached China, which is today the world's single largest watermelon producer. Moorish invaders
introduced the fruit into Europe and there is evidence of it being cultivated in Córdoba in 961 and
also in Seville in 1158. It spread northwards through southern Europe, perhaps limited in its
advance by summer temperatures being insufficient for good yields. The fruit had begun
appearing in European herbals by 1600, and was widely planted in Europe in the 17th century as
a minor garden crop.[5]
European colonists and slaves from Africa introduced the watermelon into the New World.
Spanish settlers were growing it in Florida in 1576, and it was being grown inMassachusetts by
1629, and by 1650 was being cultivated in Peru, Brazil andPanama as well as in many British
and Dutch colonies. Around the same time, Native Americans were cultivating the crop in the
Mississippi valley and Florida. Watermelons were rapidly accepted in Hawaii and other Pacific
islands when they were introduced there by explorers such as Captain James Cook.[5]

Description

Watermelon slices
The watermelon is an annual plant with long, weak, trailing or climbing stems which are five-
angled and up to 3 m (10 ft) long. Young growth is densely woolly with yellowish-brown hairs
which disappear as the plant ages. The leaves are stemmed and are alternate, large and
pinnately-lobed, stiff and rough when old. The plant has branching tendrils. The flowers grow
singly in the leaf axils and the corolla is white or yellow inside and greenish-yellow on the
outside. The flowers are unisexual, with male and female flowers occurring on the same plant
(monoecious). The male flowers predominate at the beginning of the season and the female
flowers, which develop later, have inferior ovaries. The styles are united into a single column and
the large fruit is a kind of modified berry called a pepo. This has a thick rind (exocarp) and fleshy
center (mesocarp and endocarp).[6] Wild plants have fruits up to 20 cm (8 in) in diameter while
cultivated varieties may exceed 60 cm (24 in). The rind of this fruit is mid- to dark green and
usually mottled or striped, and the flesh contains numerous pips and is red, orange, pink, yellow,
green or white.[5][7]

Variety improvement
Charles Fredric Andrus, a horticulturist at the USDA Vegetable Breeding Laboratory
in Charleston, South Carolina, set out to produce a disease-resistant and wilt-resistant
watermelon. The result, in 1954, was "that gray melon from Charleston". Its oblong shape and
hard rind made it easy to stack and ship. Its adaptability meant it could be grown over a wide
geographical area. It produced high yields and was resistant to the most serious watermelon
diseases: anthracnose and fusarium wilt.[8]Others were also working on disease-resistant
varieties; J. M. Crall at the University of Florida produced "Jubilee" in 1963 and C. V. Hall of
Kansas State University produced "Crimson sweet" the following year. These are no longer
grown to any great extent, but their lineage has been further developed into hybrid varieties with
higher yields, better flesh quality and attractive appearance. [5] Another objective of plant breeders
has been the elimination of the seeds which occur scattered throughout the flesh. This has been
achieved through the use of triploid varieties, but these are sterile, and the cost of producing the
seed, through crossing a tetraploid parent with a normal diploid parent, is high.[5]
Today, farmers in approximately 44 states in the United States grow watermelon
commercially. Georgia, Florida, Texas,California and Arizona are the United States' largest
watermelon producers. This now-common fruit is often large enough that groceries often sell half
or quarter melons. Some smaller, spherical varieties of watermelon, both red- and yellow-
fleshed, are sometimes called "icebox melons". [9] The largest recorded fruit was grown in
Tennessee in 2013 and weighed 159 kilograms (351 pounds). [10]

Cultivation

Top five watermelon producers (2012, in tonnes)

 China 70,000,000

 Turkey 4,044,184

 Iran 3,800,000

 Brazil 2,079,547
  Egypt 1,874,710

 World total 95,211,432

Source: UN FAOSTAT [11]

Watermelons are tropical or subtropical plants and need temperatures higher than about 25 °C
(77 °F) to thrive. On a garden scale, seeds are usually sown in pots under cover and
transplanted into well-drained sandy loam with a pH of between 5.5 and 7 and medium nitrogen
levels. Aphids, fruit flies and root-knot nematodesattack this crop, and if humidity levels are high,
the plants are prone to plant diseases, such as powdery mildew and mosaic virus.[12]

Seedless watermelon

For commercial plantings, one beehive per acre (4,000 m2 per hive) is the minimum

recommendation by the US Department of Agriculture for pollination of conventional, seeded
varieties. Because seedless hybrids have sterile pollen, pollinizer rows of varieties with viable
pollen must also be planted. Since the supply of viable pollen is reduced and pollination is much
more critical in producing the seedless variety, the recommended number of hives per acre,
or pollinator density, increases to three hives per acre (1,300 m2 per hive). Watermelons have a
longer growing period than other melons, and can often take 85 days or more from the time of
transplanting for the fruit to mature. [13]
In Japan and other parts of the Far East, varieties are often grown that are susceptible to
fusarium wilt, and these may begrafted onto disease-resistant rootstocks.[5] Farmers of
the Zentsuji region of Japan found a way to grow cubic watermelons, by growing the fruits in
glass boxes and letting them naturally assume the shape of the receptacle. [14] The cubic shape
was originally designed to make the melons easier to stack and store, but the cubic watermelons
are often more than double the price of normal ones, and much of their appeal to consumers is in
their novelty. Pyramid-shaped watermelons have also been developed and any polyhedral shape
may potentially also be used. These shaped watermelon are often harvested before optimal
ripeness. Because they are bitter instead of sweet, the shaped fruits are considered ornamental
instead of food.[15]

Varieties
The more than 1200[16] cultivars of watermelon range in weight from less than one to more than
90 kilograms (200 lb); the flesh can be red, orange, yellow or white. [13]
Watermelon with yellow flesh

 The 'Carolina Cross' produced the current world record watermelon, weighing 159
kilograms (351 pounds).[10] It has green skin, red flesh and commonly produces fruit between
29 and 68 kilograms (65 and 150 lb). It takes about 90 days from planting to harvest.[17]
 The 'Golden Midget' has a golden rind and pink flesh when ripe, and takes 70 days from
planting to harvest.[18]
 The 'Orangeglo' has a very sweet orange flesh, and is a large, oblong fruit weighing 9–
14 kg (20–31 lb). It has a light green rind with jagged dark green stripes. It takes about 90–
100 days from planting to harvest.[19]
 The 'Moon and Stars' variety was created in 1926. [20] The rind is purple/black and has
many small, yellow circles (stars) and one or two large, yellow circles (moon). The melon
weighs 9–23 kg (20–51 lb).[21]The flesh is pink or red and has brown seeds. The foliage is
also spotted. The time from planting to harvest is about 90 days.[22]

'Moon and stars' watermelon cultivar

 The 'Cream of Saskatchewan' has small, round fruits about 25 cm (9.8 in) in diameter. It
has a thin, light and dark green striped rind, and sweet white flesh with black seeds. It can
grow well in cool climates. It was originally brought to Saskatchewan, Canada, by Russian
immigrants. The melon takes 80–85 days from planting to harvest. [23]
 The 'Melitopolski' has small, round fruits roughly 28–30 cm (11–12 in) in diameter. It is an
early ripening variety that originated from the Astrakhan region of Russia, an area known for
cultivation of watermelons. The Melitopolski watermelons are seen piled high by vendors
in Moscow in the summer. This variety takes around 95 days from planting to harvest. [24]
 The 'Densuke' watermelon has round fruit up to 11 kg (24 lb). The rind is black with no
stripes or spots. It is grown only on the island of Hokkaido, Japan, where up to 10,000
watermelons are produced every year. In June 2008, one of the first harvested watermelons
was sold at an auction for 650,000 yen (US$6,300), making it the most expensive
watermelon ever sold. The average selling price is generally around 25,000 yen ($250). [25]
 Many cultivars are no longer grown commercially because of their thick rind, but seeds
may be available among home gardeners and specialty seed companies. This thick rind is
desirable for making watermelon pickles, and some old cultivars favoured for this purpose
include 'Tom Watson', 'Georgia Rattlesnake', and 'Black Diamond'. [26]
Uses
Nutrients

Watermelon, raw

Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)

Energy 127 kJ (30 kcal)

Carbohydrates 7.55 g

Sugars 6.2 g

Dietary fiber 0.4 g

Fat 0.15 g

Protein 0.61 g

Vitamins

Vitamin A equiv. (4%)

beta-carotene 28 μg

(3%)

303 μg

Thiamine (B1) (3%)

0.033 mg

Riboflavin (B2) (2%)

0.021 mg

Niacin (B3) (1%)

0.178 mg

Pantothenic acid (B5) (4%)

0.221 mg

Vitamin B6 (3%)

0.045 mg

Choline (1%)
 4.1 mg

Vitamin C (10%)

8.1 mg

Minerals

Calcium (1%)

7 mg

Iron (2%)

0.24 mg

Magnesium (3%)

10 mg

Manganese (2%)

0.038 mg

Phosphorus (2%)

11 mg

Potassium (2%)

112 mg

Sodium (0%)

1 mg

Zinc (1%)

0.1 mg

Other constituents

appreciable content at 10% of the Daily Value (table).

Watermelon fruit is 91% water, contains 6% sugars, and is low in fat (table).[27]
Food
The watermelon is thought to have originated in southern Africa, where it is found growing wild. It
reaches maximum genetic diversity there, with sweet, bland and bitter forms. In the 19th
century, Alphonse de Candolle[1] considered the watermelon to be indigenous to tropical Africa.
[2]
 Citrullus colocynthis is often considered to be a wild ancestor of the watermelon and is now
found native in north and west Africa. However, it has been suggested on the basis of chloroplast
DNA investigations, that the cultivated and wild watermelon diverged independently from a
common ancestor, possibly C. ecirrhosus from Namibia.[3]
Evidence of its cultivation in the Nile Valley has been found from the second millennium
BC onward. Watermelon seeds have been found at Twelfth Dynasty sites and in the tomb
of Pharaoh Tutankhamun.[4]
In the 7th century, watermelons were being cultivated in India and by the 10th century had
reached China, which is today the world's single largest watermelon producer. Moorish invaders
introduced the fruit into Europe and there is evidence of it being cultivated in Córdoba in 961 and
also in Seville in 1158. It spread northwards through southern Europe, perhaps limited in its
advance by summer temperatures being insufficient for good yields. The fruit had begun
appearing in European herbals by 1600, and was widely planted in Europe in the 17th century as
a minor garden crop.[5]
European colonists and slaves from Africa introduced the watermelon into the New World.
Spanish settlers were growing it in Florida in 1576, and it was being grown inMassachusetts by
1629, and by 1650 was being cultivated in Peru, Brazil andPanama as well as in many British
and Dutch colonies. Around the same time, Native Americans were cultivating the crop in the
Mississippi valley and Florida. Watermelons were rapidly accepted in Hawaii and other Pacific
islands when they were introduced there by explorers such as Captain James Cook

Watermelon and other fruit in Boris Kustodiev's Merchant's Wife

C. l. lanatus var caffer grows wild in the Kalahari Desert, where it is known astsamma.[7] The fruits

are used by the San people and by animals for both water and nourishment. Traditionally,
travelling in the desert in the dry season could only be done in a good tsamma year. Humans can
survive on an exclusive diet of tsamma for six weeks.[7

4 Watermelon
Rind Benefits
Written by Brian Krans
Medically Reviewed by Peggy Pletcher, MS, RD, LD, CDE on February
24, 2015
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Watermelon may be one of the most appropriately named fruits.
It’s a melon that’s 98 percent water. It’s also got a healthy
amount of vitamin A and C, potassium, magnesium, and other
important nutrients.

Advertisement

The most popular part of the watermelon is the pink fruit, but like
its cousin, the cucumber, the whole thing is edible. This includes
the green scraps that usually end up in the compost bin.

The rind, which is the green skin that keeps all that water-logged
delicious fruit safe, is completely edible. Here are just a few
reasons why you should consider not throwing it out.

1. It May Make You Better in Bed

No, watermelon rind isn’t nature-powered Viagra, but some
research shows that it may help men with mild to moderate
erectile dysfunction. Its libido-boosting powers come from the
amino acid citrulline, which is concentrated in the rind.
One study showed that taking L-citrulline supplements can
improve erections without many of the potential side effects
associated with Viagra.
Try spritzing your watermelon rind with lemon juice and sprinkling
some chili powder on it. Both additives also are good for your
heart, and your, ahem, other love organ.

2. It Might Give Your Workout a

Boost
Besides improving your performance in bed, citrulline might
improve your next athletic performance as well. However, most
evidence for this isanecdotal.
To get it naturally, try pickled watermelon rinds, an old-fashioned
treat in the southern states.

3. It Can Reduce Your Blood Pressure

If your doctor instructed you to lower your blood pressure, try
eating watermelon — rind and all. Some research has shown that
watermelon extract supplements are able to help obese adults
control their blood pressure.
Watermelon is also a potential diuretic, which often is prescribed
for people with high blood pressure. Try freezing whole
watermelon slices for a nice treat on a summer’s day.

4. It Can Help Your Prostate

Watermelon is a great source of lycopene, an antioxidant that
could possibly help ward off prostate cancer.
More research is needed to establish a concrete relationship
between lypocene and cancer prevention, but preliminary studies
are promising. Lycopene is also found in the skin of tomatoes, so
give those a try, too.
Watermelon’s diuretic properties can also help keep your urinary
tract in healthy working order.

4. You Can Eat Watermelon Rind and Seeds

Most people throw away the watermelon rind, but try putting it in a blender with
some lime for a healthy, refreshing treat.6 Not only does the rind contain plenty of
health-promoting and blood-building chlorophyll, but the rind actually contains more
of the amino acid citrulline than the pink flesh. 7 
Citrulline is converted to arginine in your kidneys, and not only is this amino
acid important for heart health and maintaining your immune system, but it has been
researched to have potential therapeutic value in over 100 health conditions. 8
While many people prefer seedless watermelon varieties, black watermelon seeds
are edible and actually quite healthy. They contain iron, zinc, protein, and fiber. (In
case you were wondering, seedless watermelons aren't genetically modified, as
they're the result of hybridization.9)

Research and Development:

 
Abstracts:
1. Some physiological and growth responses of watermelon [Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.)
Matsum. and Nakai] grafted onto Lagenaria sicerariato flooding.   
Halit Yetisira, , , Mehmet E. Çaliskanb, , Soner Soyluc, and Musa Sakara (1999).
 a
Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Mustafa Kemal, 31120 Hatay, Turkey
Department of Field Crops, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Mustafa Kemal, 31120 Hatay, Turkey
c
Department of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Mustafa Kemal, 31120 Hatay,
Turkey
 
In this study, the effect of flooding on plant growth and photosynthetic activity of grafted watermelon
were investigated. The watermelon [Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum and Nakai] cv. ‘Crimson Tide’
was grafted onto Lagenaria siceraria SKP (Landrace). Grafted and ungrafted watermelon plants were
flooded at the soil surface for 20 days. For every 5 days, three plants were sampled to determine plant
fresh and dry weight, leaf number and main stem length. Leaf colour, single leaf CO2 exchange rate
(CER), stomatal conductance (SC) and transpiration rate (Ts) were determined at 3 days interval.
Flooding caused chlorosis on both grafted and ungrafted plants but such effect was more pronounced on
ungrafted watermelon plants. CER, SC and Ts began to decrease from the 4th day of the flooding in both
grafted and ungrafted plants as compared with non-flooded controls. However, grafted plants showed
higher tolerance to flooding and had two-folds more CER, SC and Ts. Plant growth rate was also
significantly lower in flooded plants than when compared to unflooded controls. Ungrafted plants had
lower dry weight than grafted plants under flooding conditions. At the end of the experiment, decrease
in fresh weight of plants was about 180% in ungrafted and 50% in grafted watermelons. Dry weight also
decreased about 230% in ungrafted and 80% in grafted watermelons. Similar results were found in leaf
number and main stem length. Adventitious roots and aerenchyma formation were observed in grafted
watermelon but not in ungrafted watermelon under flooding. Adventitious root formation began from 3rd
 or 4th day of flooding and adventitious roots grew towards the soil surface. Flooding tolerance of
watermelon could be improved by grafting onto L. siceraria.
 

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Benefits of Watermelon Rinds

by NICKI WOLF | Last Updated: Jan 28, 2015

Most people discard the rind of the juicy watermelon, but don’t be so hasty – the

watermelon rind has many benefits. Whether you eat the rind or use it topically, this

often-wasted food can do good things for your body. Finding a use for it also helps

cut down on the amount of garbage you produce, so it’s good for the environment as

well.

Nutritional Benefits
 The rind may not be as juicy as the flesh of a watermelon, but you can eat it. A 1-

inch cube of watermelon rind contains 1.8 calories. The majority of the calories come

from carbohydrates, with 0.32 g per serving. While you will not derive a tremendous

amount of macronutrients from eating watermelon rind, this food does contain some

vitamins. One serving provides 2 percent of the daily recommended intake of vitamin

C and 1 percent of the vitamin B-6 your body requires every day.  This makes

watermelon rind good for your skin and immunity, as well as the health of your

nervous system.

Economic Benefits

Considered primarily a Southern food, pickles made from watermelon rind offer a tart

taste and stretch your food dollars. Homemade pickles made from watermelon rind

offer an inexpensive alternative to purchased pickles. Because watermelon rind is

often thrown out and not used, finding ways to use it for food, such as pickles,

relishes or jam, extends the functionality of this fruit. You can cut the rind into spears

and chunks, as well as shred it for recipes. The crunch and texture mimic pickles

made from cucumbers, and you get the most use out of the fruit.

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Citrulline Content

Watermelon rind contains a compound known as citrulline, according to a study

published in the June 2005 issue of the “Journal of Chromatography.” Citrulline might

serve up a range of medicinal benefits. Evidence in the March 2011 edition of the

“Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture” suggests that the citrulline in
watermelon rinds gives it antioxidant effects that protect you from free-radical

damage. Additionally, citrulline converts to arginine, an amino acid vital to the heart,

circulatory system and immune system, says researchers from Texas A&M’s Fruit

and Vegetable Improvement Center. These researchers speculate that watermelon

rind might relax blood vessels and have a role in treating erectile dysfunction.

Serving Tips

Sautee chopped watermelon rinds in olive oil -- season them with salt and pepper for

added flavor, or get creative by using a mixture of red chili flakes, paprika and

cilantro. Use watermelon rinds, along with carrots, potatoes and parsnips, to add

bulk and nutritional value to stews, or juice watermelon rinds for a nutrient-packed

beverage.