When to Harvest

Watermelon

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Want to know when to harvest your watermelons so you get sweet, juicy fruit every time? You'll be a watermelon-picking rock star with these important tips.

Let's do this!

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Who has planted watermelon seeds in the spring with visions of harvesting sweet, juicy fruit—only to pick a pale, tasteless watermelon in the summer?

You’re not the only one!

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Last year, the kids and I helped glean a watermelon field after harvest.

Since I'm no watermelon-growing expert, I checked with a commercial watermelon farmer to get the scoop on picking watermelons.

Here are the secrets for knowing when to pick your watermelons. We’re going to use nearly all of our senses to decide if a watermelon is ripe and ready to pick.

Give the melon a gentle smack with your fingertips and listen to the sound. Ripe watermelons go “plunk” and unripe ones go “plink.”

Sound

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The watermelon should be heavy for its size. That’s what you’re looking for here. One of the melons from our garden weighed 20.5 pounds!

Touch

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You’re looking for a couple of different things here. The watermelon’s underside should be cream-colored or light yellow. If it’s white, it’s not ripe. If the tendril is green, your watermelon is not ripe. Be patient, grasshopper! Check on it next week.

Sight

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