Watermelon

Print with an illustration of a watermelon. Drawing originally done in ink and watercolors on paper.

ABOUT WATERMELON

Watermelon is a plant of the Cucurbitaceae family. It is native to Africa with a great presence and diffusion all over the world. It is widely cultivated all over the world due to its fruit, perhaps the most desired by children and adults and very much associated with summer.

It is a herbaceous plant of annual cycle, climbing or creeping, of rough texture, with stems provided with tendrils. The flowers are yellow, large and unisexual.

The fruit of the plant is large (usually more than four kilos), fleshy and juicy (more than 90% is water), almost spherical, smooth texture without porosities, green in two or more shades. The flesh is red in color and the flesh is generally sweet in flavor (more rarely yellow and bitter).

The numerous seeds can measure up to 1 cm in length, are black, brown or white in color and rich in vitamin E. They have been used in folk medicine and are also consumed roasted as food.

History

Watermelons were originally cultivated for their high water content and were stored for consumption during dry seasons, not only as a source of food, but also as a method of water storage. In the Dead Sea region, watermelon seeds were found in ancient settlements.

At a prehistoric archaeological site in southwestern Libya, many seeds of wild watermelon (C. lanatus) five thousand years old. This discovery may support the possibility that the plant was more widely distributed in the past.

Watermelon in popular culture

In Valencia it was a common practice to leave the watermelon in the irrigation ponds for a few hours to cool it, it was hung on a rope to be able to pull it once it was to be consumed.