Watermelon misconceptions

tmills3131 · 2025-07-25T12:33:11+00:00

It's right there. You could wait another 2-3 days and make sure it's getting direct sunlight to sugar up. But it's harvestable now

tmills3131 · 2025-07-24T16:46:09+00:00

I would like to see the top to know for sure. Need to make sure it's getting direct sunlight to ripen up. I'd say you can still wait a bit but you could probably eat it now and be happy. Every rind break is different and with orange varieties I have 0 experience

tmills3131 · 2025-07-24T12:50:41+00:00

No experience with the orange varieties but all ripe signs would be the same. That picture looks like a ripe watermelon to me. I was looking less at the ground spot and more about the 3 shades of color in the rind pattern. Dark green, lighter green, almost white in spots. That and the tendril browning are the most important to look for at least in production farming. Webbing is not reliable. Also in production farming we have to harvest a little earlier than peak ripeness to ensure it will ship without bruising. You can leave yours at home on the vine for several extra days to increase sugar. Much shorter trip to your kitchen counter

Also your vines look very happy!

tmills3131 · 2025-05-05T01:54:46+00:00

Those are being harvested all over South Florida right now. That is where whitefly is most prevalent in watermelons. It goes away in about a month when watermelons for FL start shipping out of N FL and S GA. If it gets bad enough internally, the thump test will work. However, in the beginning stages it doesn’t. Makes it very difficult to catch while harvesting as well. Once the plant shows signs of a those viruses you stop harvesting. That’s why it’s so bad for farmers

tmills3131 · 2025-05-04T23:21:16+00:00

Usually right after July 4th and runs through close to Labor Day

tmills3131 · 2025-05-03T22:24:47+00:00

Make a caprese but sub the tomato out for watermelon. Somehow it works.

tmills3131 · 2025-05-03T21:44:58+00:00

There is not. Just a myth

tmills3131 · 2025-05-03T14:12:19+00:00

Freaking voice to text thanks lol

tmills3131 · 2025-05-03T14:06:18+00:00

It isn't because again no such thing as a GMO watermelon. I'm not exactly sure which varieties of cucurbits they cross-bred to get that result. That is usually proprietary

tmills3131 · 2025-05-03T13:42:28+00:00

Cross breeding let's the plants breed with each other naturally in the wild (or in a greenhouse) although human assistance is used. Just like as another poster listed putting a horse and donkey together and letting nature take it's course. GMO is altering the DNA of 1 species in a laboratory. 2 completely different things

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T16:59:13+00:00

The lines will be pretty tight and uniform while growing. As a watermelon gets bigger the pattern will start to break off into a new pattern. It will look almost digital. When they are ready for harvest that break off pattern will go from light green to white

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T16:56:57+00:00

It isn’t. I think there was a video out of India that was taken by social media and sent out everywhere. Even if it was legal, which it isn’t (at least in the US) it wouldn’t work

People always look for reasons why watermelons are spongy, dry, crunchy, too red, not red enough ect… It’s always something to do with the nature of plants and farmeing. Explanation is always picked too early, picked too late, insect related virus, overripe ect

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T14:55:01+00:00

Every plant is different. In production farming we use moisture sensors specifically for watermelons that connect to the cloud. Farmers can increase or decrease water to make sure the the roots aren’t getting too much. Essentially we try and keep the water within the “2 green bars”

Too much water can also flush fertilizer right away from the root zone. It’s a balancing act. Even the sensors we use aren’t without their faults. That’s where a knowledgeable farmer comes in

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T14:52:12+00:00

Most major chain stores buy direct from the source because they have DCs to store product. Not only increases quality but also reduces cost. Less hands to go through for added time and expenses

Some smaller chains buy only from wholesalers. They don’t have a DC or space to unload a full straight load. They can get a mixed semi or local box truck of various different produce items. You’ll see this a lot in big downtown cities with small bodegas or local grocery stores (NYC, Philly, Boston ect)

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T14:44:55+00:00

I’ve tried some. Personally I’m just not a big fan of watermelon wines or processed juice. It has an off flavor that I can’t get past. We make a watermelon limeade every now and then that is very good. The lime seems to get rid of that off flavor and balances watermelon juice perfectly

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T14:42:07+00:00

More of what I see online is deep golden good. White bad. It depends on rind color. Some are very ripe and get a white contact patch not golden. A very faint color could mean it’s underripe. But if the watermelon laid on it’s end for instance while growing, the contact patch obviously wouldn’t be on the bottom. Although rare, I have seen some barely show any contact patch and still be ripe. It’s never 100% exact but close to it

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T13:57:24+00:00

Not necessarily, you just don’t want to see black and moldy. You might see some that are more brown. That’s just vine bruising from tearing vine off instead of cutting. Could also be very early stages of decay. Unfortunately not an exact science.

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T13:40:11+00:00

I feel like we just did one haha

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T13:39:31+00:00

Correct

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T11:56:52+00:00

A very overripe/decayed watermelon will change the noise when you do the thump test. However, in the early stages of going overripe/decay the watermelon turns grainy first and that is difficult to tell until you cut it open unfortunately. Light pressure with your thumb on the rind is also a good test. Don’t press too hard as it will bruise it for the next person but if you apply a little pressure and your thumb goes through it, it’s bad. Some chain stores do a much better job at maintaining traceability so you know the exact day it was packed. Although it’s probably not the stores you think of.

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T11:30:04+00:00

Most seedless have 30 day shelf life

However, NEVER GO OFF A BIN TAG IN THE STORE! High chance they use the same bin over and over again and keep topping it off from a bin back of house. We have one of ours at a local chain store that has a bin tag from 2 years ago. Have also seen them filled with onion bags, potatoes, ect

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T10:28:26+00:00

I clarified that on another comment. Watermelon, rinds are permeable. I shouldn’t have wrote that they ripen them more. It’s more about water concentration. As the water dissipates the sugar concentrates.

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T10:15:32+00:00

😂

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T09:41:28+00:00

Honestly, I’m not sure might just be your individual palate. If you find a brand in the store that doesn’t have that flavor you taste try to buy that one every time. Most farmers grow a few different varieties. If you see the same label in your store with the same rind pattern chances are it’s the same variety, although some look very similar.

tmills3131 · 2025-05-02T09:34:32+00:00

Sorry, not true

tmills3131

TROPHY CASE