Watermelon

Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is a flowering plant species of the

Cucurbitaceae family . A scrambling and trailing vine-like plant, it Watermelon
was originally domesticated in Africa. It is a highly cultivated fruit
worldwide, with more than 1,000 varieties.

Wild watermelon seeds have been found in the prehistoric Libyan

site of Uan Muhuggiag.[2] There is also evidence from seeds in
Pharaoh tombs of watermelon cultivation in Ancient Egypt.

Watermelon is grown in favorable climates from tropical to

temperate regions worldwide for its large edible fruit, which is a
berry with a hard rind and no internal divisions, and is botanically
called a pepo. The sweet, juicy flesh is usually deep red to pink,
with many black seeds, although seedless varieties exist. The fruit
can be eaten raw or pickled, and the rind is edible after cooking. It
may also be consumed as a juice or as an ingredient in mixed
beverages.

Considerable breeding effort has developed disease-resistant

varieties. Many cultivars are available that produce mature fruit
within 100 days of planting. In 2017, China produced about two- Watermelon
thirds of the world total of watermelons.

Contents
Description
Taxonomy
History
Watermelon cross section
Cultivation
Scientific classification
Cultivar groups
Citroides group Kingdom: Plantae
Lanatus group Clade: Tracheophytes
Vulgaris group
Clade: Angiosperms
Varieties
Variety improvement Clade: Eudicots
Production Clade: Rosids
Food and beverage Order: Cucurbitales
Nutrients
Family: Cucurbitaceae
Gallery
Genus: Citrullus
See also
Species: C. lanatus
References Binomial name
External links
Citrullus lanatus
(Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai

Description Synonyms[1]
List
The watermelon is an annual that has a prostrate or climbing habit.
Stems are up to 3 metres (10 feet) long and new growth has yellow Anguria citrullus Mill.
or brown hairs. Leaves are 60 to 200 millimetres (21 ⁄4 to 73 ⁄4
Citrullus amarus Schrad.
inches) long and 40 to 150 mm (11 ⁄2 to 6 in) wide. These usually
have three lobes which are themselves lobed or doubly lobed. Citrullus anguria (Duchesne)
Plants have both male and female flowers on 40-millimetre-long H.Hara
(11 ⁄2 in) hairy stalks. These are yellow, and greenish on the back.[3]
Citrullus aquosus Schur
The watermelon is a large annual plant with long, weak, trailing or Citrullus battich Forssk.
climbing stems which are five-angled (five-sided) and up to 3 m
Citrullus caffer Schrad.
(10 ft) long. Young growth is densely woolly with yellowish-brown
hairs which disappear as the plant ages. The leaves are large, Citrullus caffrorum Schrad.
coarse, hairy pinnately-lobed and alternate; they get stiff and rough
when old. The plant has branching tendrils. The white to yellow Citrullus chodospermus Falc. &
flowers grow singly in the leaf axils and the corolla is white or Dunal
yellow inside and greenish-yellow on the outside. The flowers are
Citrullus citrullus H.Karst.
unisexual, with male and female flowers occurring on the same
plant (monoecious). The male flowers predominate at the beginning Citrullus citrullus Small
of the season; the female flowers, which develop later, have inferior
Citrullus edulis Spach
ovaries. The styles are united into a single column.
Citrullus edulis Pangalo nom. illeg.
The large fruit is a kind of modified berry called a pepo with a thick
rind (exocarp) and fleshy center (mesocarp and endocarp).[4] Wild Citrullus mucosospermus (Fursa)
plants have fruits up to 20 cm (8 in) in diameter, while cultivated Fursa
varieties may exceed 60 cm (24 in). The rind of the fruit is mid- to
Citrullus pasteca Sageret
dark green and usually mottled or striped, and the flesh, containing
numerous pips spread throughout the inside, can be red or pink Citrullus vulgaris Schrad.
(most commonly), orange, yellow, green or white.[5][6]
Colocynthis amarissima Schrad.
A bitter watermelon has become naturalized in semiarid regions of nom. inval.
several continents, and is designated as a "pest plant" in parts of
Colocynthis amarissima Schltdl.
Western Australia where they are called "pig melon".[7]
Colocynthis citrullus (L.) Kuntze
The species has two varieties, watermelons (Citrullus lanatus
(Thunb.) var. lanatus) and citron melons (Citrullus lanatus var. Colocynthis citrullus Fritsch
citroides (L. H. Bailey) Mansf.), originated with the erroneous Cucumis amarissimus Schrad.
synonymization of Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai
and Citrullus vulgaris Schrad. by L.H. Bailey in 1930.[8] Molecular Cucumis citrullus (L.) Ser.
data including sequences from the original collection of Thunberg Cucumis dissectus Decne.
and other relevant type material, show that the sweet watermelon
(Citrullus vulgaris Schrad.) and the bitter wooly melon Citrullus Cucumis edulis Steud. nom. inval.
lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai are not closely related to each Cucumis laciniosus Eckl. ex Steud.
other.[9] A proposal to conserve the name, Citrullus lanatus
(Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai, was accepted by the nomenclature Cucumis laciniosus Eckl. ex
committee and confirmed at the International Botanical Congress in Schrad.
2017.[10] Cucumis vulgaris (Schrad.)
E.H.L.Krause
Taxonomy Cucurbita anguria Duchesne

The sweet watermelon was formally described by Carl Linnaeus in Cucurbita caffra Eckl. & Zeyh.
1753 and given the name Cucurbita citrullus. It was reassigned to Cucurbita citrullus L.
the genus Citrullus in 1836, under the replacement name Citrullus
vulgaris, by the German botanist Heinrich Adolf Schrader.[11] (The Cucurbita gigantea Salisb.
International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants Cucurbita pinnatifida Schrank
does not allow names like "Citrullus citrullus".)
Momordica lanata Thunb.
The bitter wooly melon is the sister species of Citrullus ecirrhosus
Cogn. from South African arid regions, while the sweet watermelon
is closer to Citrullus mucosospermus (Fursa) Fursa from West Africa
and populations from Sudan.[12] The bitter wooly melon was formally
described by Carl Peter Thunberg in 1794 and given the name
Momordica lanata.[13] It was reassigned to the genus Citrullus in
1916 by Japanese botanists Jinzō Matsumura and Takenoshin
Nakai.[14]

History
The watermelon is a flowering plant that originated in Africa, though
there is conflicting research about whether its source is West A tsamma in the Kalahari Desert
Africa[15] or Northeast Africa.[16]

Evidence of the cultivation of both C. lanatus and C. colocynthis in

the Nile Valley has been found from the second millennium BC
onward, and seeds of both species have been found at Twelfth
Dynasty sites and in the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun.[17]
Watermelons were cultivated for their high water content and were
stored to be eaten during dry seasons, not only as a food source, but
as a method of storing water.[16] Watermelon seeds were also found in Naturalized in Australia
the Dead Sea region at the ancient settlements of Bab edh-Dhra and
Tel Arad.[18]

A number of 5000-year old wild watermelon seeds (C. lanatus) were discovered at Uan Muhuggiag, a
prehistoric archaeological site located in southwestern Libya. This archaeobotanical discovery may support the
possibility that the plant was more widely distributed in the past.[2][16]

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. The Moors introduced the fruit into the Iberian
Peninsula 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 to the New World. Spanish settlers were
growing it in Florida in 1576, and it was being grown in Massachusetts by 1629, and by 1650 was being
cultivated in Peru, Brazil and Panama. 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] In the Civil War era United States, watermelons
were commonly grown by free black people and became one
symbol for the abolition of slavery.[19] After the Civil War, black
people were maligned for their association with watermelon. The
sentiment evolved into a racist stereotype where black people
shared a supposed voracious appetite for watermelon, a fruit long
correlated with laziness and uncleanliness.[20]

Seedless watermelons were initially developed in 1939 by

Japanese scientists who were able to create seedless triploid
hybrids which remained rare initially because they did not have
sufficient disease resistance.[21] Seedless watermelons became
more popular in the 21st century, rising to nearly 85% of total
watermelon sales in the United States in 2014.[22] Still Life with Watermelons, Pineapple and
Other Fruit by Albert Eckhout, a Dutch
painter active in 17th-century Brazil
Cultivation
Watermelons are plants grown in climates from tropical to temperate,
needing 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 between 5.5 and
7, and medium levels of nitrogen.

Major pests of the watermelon include aphids, fruit flies, and root-
knot nematodes. In conditions of high humidity, the plants are prone
to plant diseases such as powdery mildew and mosaic virus.[23] Some
varieties often grown in Japan and other parts of the Far East are
Illustration from the Japanese
susceptible to fusarium wilt. Grafting such varieties onto disease-
agricultural encyclopedia Seikei
resistant rootstocks offers protection.[5]
Zusetsu (1804)
The US Department of Agriculture recommends using at least one
beehive per acre (4,000 m2 per hive) for pollination of conventional,
seeded varieties for commercial plantings. Seedless hybrids have
sterile pollen. This requires planting pollinizer rows of varieties with
viable pollen. 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 (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.[24] Lack Seedless watermelon
of pollen is thought to contribute to "hollow heart" which causes the
flesh of the watermelon to develop a large hole, sometimes in an
intricate, symmetric shape. Watermelons suffering from hollow heart are safe to consume.[25][26]

Farmers of the Zentsuji region of Japan found a way to grow cubic watermelons by growing the fruits in metal
and glass boxes and making them assume the shape of the receptacle.[27] The cubic shape was originally
designed to make the melons easier to stack and store, but these "square watermelons" may be triple the price
of normal ones, so appeal mainly to wealthy urban consumers.[27] Pyramid-shaped watermelons have also
been developed and any polyhedral shape may potentially be used.[28]
Cultivar groups
A number of cultivar groups have been identified:[29]

Citroides group

(syn. C. lanatus subsp. lanatus var. citroides; C. lanatus var. citroides; C. vulgaris var. citroides)[29]

DNA data reveal that C. lanatus var. citroides Bailey is the same as Thunberg's bitter wooly melon, C. lanatus
and also the same as C. amarus Schrad. It is not a form of the sweet watermelon C. vulgaris and not closely
related to that species.

The citron melon or makataan – a variety with sweet yellow flesh that is cultivated around the world for
fodder, and the production of citron peel and pectin.[3]

Lanatus group

(syn. C. lanatus var. caffer)[29]

C. caffer Schrad. is a synonym of C. amarus Schrad.

The variety known as tsamma is grown for its juicy white flesh. The variety was an important food source for
travellers in the Kalahari Desert.[3]

Another variety known as karkoer or bitterboela is unpalatable to humans, but the seeds may be eaten.[3]

A small-fruited form with a bumpy skin has caused poisoning in sheep.[3]

Vulgaris group

This is Linnaeus's sweet watermelon; it has been grown for human consumption for thousands of years.[3]

C. lanatus mucosospermus (Fursa) Fursa

This West African species is the closest wild relative of the watermelon. It is cultivated for cattle feed.[3]

Additionally, other wild species have bitter fruit containing cucurbitacin.[30] C. colocynthis (L.) Schrad. ex
Eckl. & Zeyh., C. rehmii De Winter, and C. naudinianus (Sond.) Hook.f.

Varieties

The more than 1,200[31] cultivars of watermelon range in weight from less than 1 kilogram (21 ⁄4 pounds) to
more than 90 kg (200 lb); the flesh can be red, pink, orange, yellow or white.[24]

The 'Carolina Cross' produced the current world record for heaviest watermelon, weighing
159 kg (351 lb).[32] It has green skin, red flesh and commonly produces fruit between 29 and
68 kg (65 and 150 lb). It takes about 90 days from planting to harvest.[33]
The 'Golden Midget' has a golden rind and pink flesh when ripe, and takes 70 days from
planting to harvest.[34]
 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.[35]
The 'Moon and Stars' variety was created in 1926.[36] 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).[37] 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.[38]
The 'Cream of Saskatchewan' has small, round fruits about 25 cm (10 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.[39]
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.[40]
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).[41]
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'.[42]

Variety improvement

Charles Fredrick 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 Watermelon (an old cultivar) as
be grown over a wide geographical area. It produced high yields and depicted in a 17th-century painting,
was resistant to the most serious watermelon diseases: anthracnose oil on canvas, by Giovanni Stanchi
and fusarium wilt.[43]

Others were also working on disease-resistant cultivars; 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 by
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, with Florida
producing more watermelon than any other state.[44] 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".[45] The largest recorded fruit was grown in Tennessee
in 2013 and weighed 159 kilograms (351 pounds).[32]
Production Watermelon production, 2017
(millions of tonnes)
In 2017, global production of watermelons was 118 million tonnes, China 79.3
with China alone accounting for 67% of the total.[46] Secondary
Iran 4.0
producers included Iran, Turkey, and Brazil.[46]
Turkey 3.9

Food and beverage Brazil 2.3

World 118.4
Watermelon is a sweet, commonly consumed fruit of summer, usually
as fresh slices, diced in mixed fruit salads, or as juice.[47][48] Source: FAOSTAT of the United Nations[46]
Watermelon juice can be blended
with other fruit juices or made into
Watermelon flesh, raw
wine.[49]
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
The seeds have a nutty flavor and Energy 127 kJ (30 kcal)
can be dried and roasted, or ground
into flour.[6] In China, the seeds are Carbohydrates 7.55 g
eaten at Chinese New Year Sugars 6.2 g
celebrations.[50] In Vietnamese Dietary fiber 0.4 g
culture, watermelon seeds are Fat 0.15 g
consumed during the Vietnamese Protein 0.61 g
New Year's holiday, Tết, as a
snack.[51] Vitamins Quantity %DV†
Vitamin A equiv. 28 μg 4%
Watermelon rinds may be eaten, but beta-Carotene 303 μg 3%
their unappealing flavor may be Thiamine (B1) 0.033 mg 3%
overcome by pickling,[42] sometimes Riboflavin (B2) 0.021 mg 2%
eaten as a vegetable, stir-fried or Niacin (B3) 0.178 mg 1%
stewed.[6][52] Pantothenic acid (B5) 0.221 mg 4%
Vitamin B6 0.045 mg 3%
The Oklahoma State Senate passed a Choline 4.1 mg 1%
bill in 2007 declaring watermelon as Vitamin C 8.1 mg 10%
the official state vegetable, with
some controversy about whether it is Minerals Quantity %DV†
a vegetable or a fruit.[53] Calcium 7 mg 1%
Iron 0.24 mg 2%
Citrullis lanatus, variety caffer, Magnesium 10 mg 3%
grows wild in the Kalahari Desert, Manganese 0.038 mg 2%
where it is known as tsamma.[6] The Phosphorus 11 mg 2%
fruits are used by the San people and Potassium 112 mg 2%
wild animals for both water and Sodium 1 mg 0%
nourishment, allowing survival on a Zinc 0.1 mg 1%
diet of tsamma for six weeks.[6]
Other constituents Quantity
Water 91.45 g
Nutrients Lycopene 4532 µg

Watermelon fruit is 91% water, Link to USDA Database entry (http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/search/li

contains 6% sugars, and is low in fat st?qlookup=09326&format=Full)
(table).[54] Units
μg = micrograms • mg = milligrams
In a 100-gram (31 ⁄2 -ounce) serving, IU = International units
watermelon fruit supplies 125 †
Percentages are roughly approximated using US recommendations
kilojoules (30 kilocalories) of food
for adults.
energy and low amounts of essential
nutrients (see table). Only vitamin C Source: USDA FoodData Central (https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/index.html)
is present in appreciable content at
10% of the Daily Value (table). Watermelon pulp contains carotenoids, including lycopene.[55]

The amino acid citrulline is produced in watermelon rind.[56][57]

Gallery

Watermelon cubes Watermelons with Watermelon flowers Watermelon leaf

dark green rind,
India

Flower stems of Watermelon plant Watermelon baller Watermelon with

male and female close-up yellow flesh
watermelon
blossoms, showing
ovary on the female
'Moon and stars' Watermelon and Watermelon for sale Watermelon out for
watermelon cultivar other fruit in Boris sale in Maa Kochilei
Kustodiev's Market, Rasulgarh,
Merchant's Wife Odisha, India

Watermelon grown Watermelon rind Roasted and salted Watermelon seed

in Buryatia, Siberia curry watermelon seeds under a microscope

See also
List of fruits

References
1. "The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species" (http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/record/ke
w-2723908). Retrieved 16 April 2014.
2. Wasylikowa, Krystyna; van der Veen, Marijke (2004). "An archaeobotanical contribution to the
history of watermelon, Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai (syn. C. vulgaris Schrad.)" (h
ttps://www.jstor.org/stable/23419585). Vegetation History and Archaeobotany. 13 (4): 213–217.
doi:10.1007/s00334-004-0039-6 (https://doi.org/10.1007%2Fs00334-004-0039-6). ISSN 0939-
6314 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0939-6314). JSTOR 23419585 (https://www.jstor.org/stabl
e/23419585). S2CID 129058509 (https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:129058509).
Retrieved 14 December 2020.
3. "Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai" (http://www.plantzafrica.com/plantcd/citrullanat.ht
m). South Africa National Biodiversity Institute. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
4. "A Systematic Treatment of Fruit Types" (http://www.worldbotanical.com/fruit_types.htm).
Worldbotanical.com. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
 5. Maynard, David; Maynard, Donald N. (2012). "6: Cucumbers, melons and watermelons". In
Kiple, Kenneth F.; Ornelas, Kriemhild Coneè (eds.). The Cambridge World History of Food, Part
2. Medical History. 46. Cambridge University Press. pp. 267–270.
doi:10.1017/CHOL9780521402156 (https://doi.org/10.1017%2FCHOL9780521402156).
ISBN 978-0-521-40215-6. PMC 1044500 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1044
500). PMID 16562324 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16562324).
6. "Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai" (http://www.plantzafrica.com/plantcd/citrullanat.ht
m). South Africa National Biodiversity Institute. Retrieved 4 October 2014.
7. Parsons, William Thomas; Cuthbertson, Eric George (2001). Noxious Weeds of Australia (http
s://books.google.com/books?id=sRCrNAQQrpwC&q=wild%20melon%20australia&pg=PA408)
(2nd ed.). Collingwood, Victoria: CSIRO Publishing. pp. 407–408. ISBN 978-0643065147.
Retrieved 17 April 2014.
8. Bailey LH. 1930. Three discussions in Cucurbitaceae. Gentes Herbarum 2: 175–186.
9. Chomicki, G.; S. S. Renner (2014). "Watermelon origin solved with molecular phylogenetics
including Linnaean material: Another example of museomics" (https://doi.org/10.1111%2Fnph.
13163). New Phytologist. 205 (2): 526–32. doi:10.1111/nph.13163 (https://doi.org/10.1111%2F
nph.13163). PMID 25358433 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25358433).
10. Renner, S. S.; G. Chomicki & W. Greuter (2014). "Proposal to conserve the name Momordica
lanata (Citrullus lanatus) (watermelon, Cucurbitaceae), with a conserved type, against Citrullus
battich" (https://semanticscholar.org/paper/e5b5609283ba7011ec2e16623b438e14faff1405).
Taxon. 63 (4): 941–942. doi:10.12705/634.29 (https://doi.org/10.12705%2F634.29).
S2CID 86896357 (https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:86896357).
11. "Citrullus vulgaris Schrad." (https://www.ipni.org/n/291943-1), The International Plant Names
Index, retrieved 26 September 2019
12. Renner, S. S., A. Sousa, and G. Chomicki. 2017. Chromosome numbers, Sudanese wild forms,
and classification of the watermelon genus Citrullus, with 50 names allocated to seven
biological species. Taxon 66(6): 1393-1405.
13. "Momordica lanata Thunb" (http://www.anbg.gov.au/cgi-bin/apni?TAXON_NAME=Momordica+l
anata). Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), IBIS database. Centre for Plant Biodiversity
Research, Australian Government, Canberra. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
14. "Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai" (http://www.anbg.gov.au/cgi-bin/apni?TAXON_N
AME=Citrullus+lanatus). Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), IBIS database. Centre for Plant
Biodiversity Research, Australian Government, Canberra. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
15. Guillaume Chomicki; Susanne S. Renner (31 October 2014). "Watermelon origin solved with
molecular phylogenetics including Linnaean material: another example of museomics" (https://
doi.org/10.1111%2Fnph.13163). New Phytologist. Wiley-Blackwell. 205 (2): 526–532.
doi:10.1111/nph.13163 (https://doi.org/10.1111%2Fnph.13163). PMID 25358433 (https://pubm
ed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25358433).
16. Strauss, Mark (21 August 2015). "The 5,000-Year Secret History of the Watermelon" (https://ww
w.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/08/150821-watermelon-fruit-history-agriculture/).
National Geographic News. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20201016013417/https://ww
w.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/08/150821-watermelon-fruit-history-agriculture/) from the
original on 16 October 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
17. Zohary, Daniel and Hopf, Maria (2000) Domestication of Plants in the Old World, third edition,
Oxford University Press, p. 193, ISBN 0-19-850357-1.
18. Amar, Zohar (5 December 2016). Arabian Drugs in Medieval Mediterranean Medicine (https://b
ooks.google.com/books?id=_jVYDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT61). Edinburgh University Press.
ISBN 9781474413183. Retrieved 26 August 2019.
19. Black, William R. "How Watermelons Became a Racist Trope" (https://www.theatlantic.com/nati
onal/archive/2014/12/how-watermelons-became-a-racist-trope/383529/). The Atlantic. The
Atlantic Monthly Group. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
20. Greenlee, Cynthia (29 August 2019). "On eating watermelon in front of white people: "I'm not as
free as I thought" " (https://www.vox.com/first-person/2019/8/29/20836933/watermelon-racist-his
tory-black-people). Vox. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
21. "Production of Seedless Watermelons" (https://naldc.nal.usda.gov/download/CAT71326739/P
DF). US Department of Agriculture. 15 June 1971. Retrieved 31 May 2017.
22. Naeve, Linda (December 2015). "Watermelon" (http://www.agmrc.org/commodities-products/ve
getables/watermelon/). agmrc.org. Agricultural Marketing Resource Center. Retrieved 31 May
2017.
23. Brickell, Christopher (ed) (1992). The Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopedia of Gardening
(Print). London: Dorling Kindersley. p. 333. ISBN 978-0-86318-979-1.
24. "Watermelon Variety Descriptions" (http://vegetables.wsu.edu/WatermelonPhotos.html).
Washington State University. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
25. Johnson, Gordon C.; Ernest, Emmalea Garver (September 2011). Conditions Influencing
Hollow Heart Disorder In Triploid Watermelon (https://www.researchgate.net/publication/26727
7292). ASHS Annual Conference.
26. Thomas, Adam (18 June 2015). "Saving watermelons" (http://www1.udel.edu/udaily/2015/jun/w
atermelons-061815.html). University of Delaware. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
27. "Square fruit stuns Japanese shoppers" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/1390088.
stm). BBC News. 15 June 2001.
28. "Square watermelons Japan. English version" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JNSpMhJL
vg). YouTube. 6 November 2013. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
29. Porcher, Michel H. "Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database" (http://www.plantnames.uni
melb.edu.au/Sorting/Citrullus.html#lanatus-vulgaris-gr). Sorting Citrullus names. Retrieved
17 October 2013.
30. "Citrullus lanatus (watermelon)" (http://www.kew.org/plants-fungi/Citrullus-lanatus.htm). Royal
Botanic Gardens (Kew). Retrieved 17 October 2013.
31. "Vegetable Research & Extension Center – Icebox Watermelons" (http://agsyst.wsu.edu/Water
melon.html). Retrieved 2 August 2008.
32. "Heaviest watermelon" (http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/heaviest-waterme
lon). Guinness World Records. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
33. "Watermelon growing contest" (http://georgia4h.org/watermeloncontest/tips.htm). Georgia 4H.
The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. 2005.
Retrieved 5 October 2014.
34. "Golden Midget Watermelon" (https://web.archive.org/web/20071011024524/http://www.seedsa
vers.org/prodinfo.asp?number=1107). Archived from the original (http://www.seedsavers.org/pr
odinfo.asp?number=1107) on 11 October 2007. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
35. "Orangeglo Watermelon" (https://web.archive.org/web/20070927230140/http://www.seedsaver
s.org/prodinfo.asp?number=1108). Archived from the original (http://www.seedsavers.org/prodi
nfo.asp?number=1108) on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 23 April 2007.
36. "Moon and Stars Watermelon Heirloom" (https://web.archive.org/web/20071217100450/http://ra
reseeds.com/seeds/Watermelon/Moon-and-Stars). rareseeds.com. Archived from the original (h
ttp://rareseeds.com/seeds/Watermelon/Moon-and-Stars) on 17 December 2007. Retrieved
15 July 2008.
37. Evans, Lynette (15 July 2005). "Moon & Stars watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) — Seed-spittin'
melons makin' a comeback" (https://web.archive.org/web/20071013160130/http://www.sfgate.c
om/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2005/07/16/HOG4UDNGDB1.DTL). The San
Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c
hronicle/archive/2005/07/16/HOG4UDNGDB1.DTL) on 13 October 2007. Retrieved 6 July
2007.
38. "Moon and Stars Watermelon" (https://web.archive.org/web/20070602143014/http://www.seeds
avers.org/prodinfo.asp?number=266). Archived from the original (http://www.seedsavers.org/pr
odinfo.asp?number=266) on 2 June 2007. Retrieved 23 April 2007.
39. "Watermelon, Cream Saskatchewan" (https://web.archive.org/web/20090221073205/http://ww
w.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=778). seedsavers.org. Archived from the original (http://
www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=778) on 21 February 2009.
40. "Melitopolski Watermelon" (https://web.archive.org/web/20070927230154/http://www.seedsave
rs.org/prodinfo.asp?number=267). Archived from the original (http://www.seedsavers.org/prodin
fo.asp?number=267) on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 23 April 2007.
41. Hosaka, Tomoko A. (6 June 2008). "Black Japanese watermelon sold at record price" (https://w
eb.archive.org/web/20080609032322/http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jJBRT0pnOdQVMU
zzkKC_cGHo7IdQD914F62O0). The Associated Pres. Archived from the original (http://ap.goo
gle.com/article/ALeqM5jJBRT0pnOdQVMUzzkKC_cGHo7IdQD914F62O0) on 9 June 2008.
Retrieved 10 June 2008.
42. Todd C. Wehner (2008). "12. Watermelon". In Jaime Prohens and Fernando Nuez (ed.).
Handbook of plant breeding. Volume 1, Vegetables. I, Asteraceae, Brassicaceae,
Chenopodicaceae, and Cucurbitaceae. Handbook of Plant Breeding. 1. Springer. pp. 381–418.
doi:10.1007/978-0-387-30443-4_12 (https://doi.org/10.1007%2F978-0-387-30443-4_12).
ISBN 978-0-387-72291-7.
43. "Watermelon developer dies at 101" (https://web.archive.org/web/20120328100628/http://video.
theeagle.com/news/2007/jul/16/watermelon_developer_dies_at10679/?print). Post and
Courier, 16 July 2007
44. "Florida produces more watermelon than any other state" (https://www.clickorlando.com/news/fl
orida-produces-more-watermelon-than-any-other-state). 16 July 2019.
45. "Good reasons for icebox melons" (http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Good+reasons+for+icebox+m
elons.-a03751171). The Free Library. Sunset. 1 May 1985. Retrieved 4 October 2014.
46. "Watermelon production in 2017, Crops/Regions/World list/Production Quantity (pick lists)" (htt
p://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QC). UN Food and Agriculture Organization, Corporate
Statistical Database (FAOSTAT). 2018. Retrieved 25 August 2019.
47. "Watermelon" (http://www.agmrc.org/commodities-products/vegetables/watermelon/). g
Marketing Resource Center, US Department of Agriculture, Iowa State University. 2017.
Retrieved 9 May 2017.
48. "Top 10 ways to enjoy watermelon" (http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/top-10-ways-t
o-enjoy-watermelon). Produce for Better Health Foundation, Centers for Disease Control, US
National Institutes of Health. 2017. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
49. Ogodo, A. C.; Ugbogu, O. C.; Ugbogu, A. E.; Ezeonu, C. S. (2015). "Production of mixed fruit
(pawpaw, banana and watermelon) wine using Saccharomyces cerevisiae isolated from palm
wine" (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4639538). SpringerPlus. 4: 683.
doi:10.1186/s40064-015-1475-8 (https://doi.org/10.1186%2Fs40064-015-1475-8).
PMC 4639538 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4639538). PMID 26576326 (http
s://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26576326).
50. Shiu-ying Hu (2005). Food Plants of China (https://books.google.com/books?id=2OiYydyrsygC
&pg=PA125). Chinese University Press. p. 125. ISBN 978-962-996-229-6.
51. The Asian Texans (https://books.google.com/books?id=uEH7gZ-9qh0C&pg=PA104&dq=water
melon+new+year+vietnamese&lr=) By Marilyn Dell Brady, Texas A&M University Press
52. Bryant Terry (2009). Vegan Soul Kitchen: Fresh, Healthy, and Creative African-American
Cuisine (https://archive.org/details/vegansoulkitchen00terr). Da Capo Press. p. 46 (https://archi
ve.org/details/vegansoulkitchen00terr/page/46). ISBN 978-0-7867-4503-6.
53. "Oklahoma Declares Watermelon Its State Vegetable" (https://web.archive.org/web/200803020
61550/http://cbs4denver.com/watercooler/Oklahoma.watermelon.state.2.282939.html).
CBS4denver. 18 April 2007. Archived from the original (http://cbs4denver.com/watercooler/Okla
homa.watermelon.state.2.282939.html) on 2 March 2008. Retrieved 3 October 2009.
54. "Watermelon, raw" (http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fruits-and-fruit-juices/2072/2). Nutritional
data. Self. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
55. Perkins-Veazie P, Collins JK, Davis AR, Roberts W (2006). "Carotenoid content of 50
watermelon cultivars". J Agric Food Chem. 54 (7): 2593–7. doi:10.1021/jf052066p (https://doi.or
g/10.1021%2Fjf052066p). PMID 16569049 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16569049).
56. Rimando AM, Perkins-Veazie PM (2005). "Determination of citrulline in watermelon rind" (http
s://naldc-legacy.nal.usda.gov/naldc/download.xhtml?id=37397&content=PDF). J Chromatogr
A. 1078 (1–2): 196–200. doi:10.1016/j.chroma.2005.05.009 (https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.chrom
a.2005.05.009). PMID 16007998 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16007998).
57. The Associated Press (3 July 2008). "CBC News – Health – Watermelon the real passion
fruit?" (http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/watermelon-the-real-passion-fruit-1.764863). CBC.
Retrieved 3 August 2014.

External links
Watermelon.org (https://www.watermelon.org/) from the US National Watermelon Promotion
Board

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Watermelon&oldid=1003918330"

This page was last edited on 31 January 2021, at 09:12 (UTC).

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this
site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia
Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.