Who won't love a succulent fruit like Watermelon, especially under the scorching heat of the Sun?!
Watermelon, Citrulus lanatus var.lanatus from family of Cucurbitaceae, is a vine like flowering plant originated from southern Africa. It has been cultivated in Egypt a couple of thousand years BC, and by around 10th century AD had reached India and China and later spread into Southern Europe and the world.
| Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |
|---|---|
| Energy | 127 kJ (30 kcal) |
7.55 g
| |
| Sugars | 6.2 g |
| Dietary fiber | 0.4 g |
0.15 g
| |
0.61 g
| |
| Vitamins | |
| Vitamin A equiv. |
(4%)
28 μg
(3%)
303 μg |
| Thiamine (B1) |
(3%)
0.033 mg |
| Riboflavin (B2) |
(2%)
0.021 mg |
| Niacin (B3) |
(1%)
0.178 mg |
(4%)
0.221 mg | |
| Vitamin B6 |
(3%)
0.045 mg |
| Choline |
(1%)
4.1 mg |
| Vitamin C |
(10%)
8.1 mg |
| Trace metals | |
| 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 | |
| Water | 91.45 g |
| Lycopene | 4532 µg |
| |
| Percentages are roughly approximated usingUS recommendations for adults. Source: USDA Nutrient Database | |
When I start gardening, my focus has been edible plants, i.e.: Vegetables and Fruit. Besides an experimentation and training for green thumb, I have always wanted a kitchen garden, where I can produce something to eat. And as an effort I have planted some fruit trees like mangoes, longan, citrus trees that I germinated from seeds, such as lemons, kumquats, limes and then watermelon which seeds I bought from SeedsNow.com.
But then, the question is would it be adequate to plant the fruit trees in pots? Well, it is. As long as you use the right size of pots and give enough nutrition for the plant to flower and fruit. Because I'm doing organic gardening, I only depend on compost and manure. Sometimes I apply my homemade liquid fertilizer and organic fertilizer that I buy.
My first experiment is Sugar Baby Watermelon, and I started germination in Spring. Since the pot I used was 5 galon pot. I guess it's not enough power to sustain 3 plants that I planted in one pot. And out of 3 fruits I got, one was accidentally cut off from the vine, another one got a bottom-end-rot and the last one was the biggest one (see the picture above), where it fits in my palm.
As for the taste, it's sweet enough to conclude that it's ripe. My only and biggest pest problem is with the Aphids and powdery mildew as the weather was very hot and humid from last December up to the hot season.
I plan to plant in a bigger pots next time.
For more information on Watermelon and how to cultivate it click here.
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