2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
In the midst of the blessed season of melons and watermelons, it will not hurt to learn a little more about these delicious and incredibly popular melons and gourds. We have recently talked about melons, and now the turn of watermelons has come: let's find out how much the largest watermelon weighed, are the fruits edible without seeds, is it possible to eat watermelon seeds or crusts, and why in Japan they began to grow watermelons in the form of a square?
Watermelons can have a very unusual shape
Over the past forty years, enterprising farmers from Japan have been quite successful in growing watermelons of very unusual shapes. It all began with square watermelons - they were placed in a special cubic shape, and when the ripe fruits completely filled it, they were removed from this shape. True, in most cases they turned out to be immature, so they were sold exclusively as a souvenir, while the price of such a souvenir could easily reach a hundred dollars! Initially, the idea of growing such fruits meant only the convenience of storage and transportation - it was believed that such original watermelons would fit much better in standard refrigerators, and it would be much easier to transport them. However, the development of the watermelon-souvenir "industry" made it possible to extract a very good profit from this interesting activity, as a result of which farmers began to grow even more unusual fruits - pyramidal shapes, as well as in the form of hearts and even human faces.
The largest watermelon - what is it?
The heaviest watermelon is mentioned in the notorious Guinness Book of Records - a huge fruit was grown only six years ago, in 2013, by the American Chris Kent, and its weight was more than one and a half centners (to be more precise, 159 kilograms)!
Huge variety of varieties
There are much more varieties of watermelon in the world than varieties of melons - currently, their number reaches a very impressive mark of 1200 varieties! At the same time, all watermelons are grouped into four independent categories: fruits with seeds and without seeds, as well as yellow (the pulp of some fruits acquires a rich yellow color during ripening) and miniature watermelons.
Are watermelons dangerous without seeds?
It is believed that seedless watermelons are nothing more than genetically modified foods. However, this is nothing more than a myth - these fruits are simply obtained through hybridization. And the little white "seeds", which are often found in their pulp, are not really seeds - they are just empty seed coats, characterized by a complete lack of possibility for further reproduction.
Watermelon can be eaten whole
Yes, watermelon rinds are also quite edible and boast a truly incredible amount of a wide variety of nutrient compounds in their composition! In China, for example, watermelon crusts have been in use for a long time and safely - they are often stewed or lightly fried, in addition, there are many recipes for pickling them. The seeds of these fruits are also eaten - in the same China and the Middle East, they are dried and fried, resulting in an excellent snack.
Cancer prevention
Sweet striped fruits are distinguished not only by their excellent taste - they also have the ability to prevent cancer: watermelons contain very impressive amounts of the antioxidant lycopene, which can significantly reduce the risk of developing certain types of cancer, including stomach cancer.prostate and lungs.
Fruit, vegetable and berry at the same time
The sweet taste of these juicy fruits literally obliges them to consider them fruits, and botanists also consider them to be fruits, because they contain grains. Nevertheless, many summer residents consider watermelons to be vegetables, because they are often grown together with corn or green peas. And there is also an opinion that a watermelon is nothing more than a berry. In reality, these fruits are representatives of the large Pumpkin family, which includes both melons and pumpkin with cucumbers.
Water content volume
It is very high - as much as 92%! And it is this property that allows watermelons to perfectly refresh on hot summer days! According to studies, these fruits help to saturate the body with life-giving moisture at least twice better than a glass of water drunk after an intense fitness workout. And the salts contained in watermelons help maintain the required moisture level, significantly reducing the risk of dehydration.
Leader in cultivation
As in the case of melons, China is the world leader in the cultivation of watermelons. The second place went to Turkey, and the third - to Iran.
Do you like to feast on watermelons? And did you try to grow them yourself?
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