Yellow watermelons: the best varieties and growing features
How wonderful to enjoy a watermelon on a hot summer day. This berry is extremely popular among lovers of juicy and sweet products that are grown in garden plots. Among ordinary watermelons, which have red flesh, it clearly stood out as a separate variety - yellow watermelon.
Species history
The yellow watermelon entered the berry world through experiments conducted by breeders only a few decades ago. The original elements that were crossed were wild watermelon and ordinary red.
As you know, wild watermelon cannot be taken as food because of the disgusting taste. An interesting fact after crossing was the preservation of only the original color of its pulp.
The resulting berry can have both a round and a slightly oval shape, however, in both cases, the color of the pulp remains unchanged - yellow. It also differs from ordinary red and its unique taste. At present, such a watermelon has received the popular name lunar or "baby". The variety is especially popular in Spain and Thailand. In these countries, the number of grown yellow watermelons is several times higher than the yield of red ones.
Yellow watermelon came to Russia quite recently. It is actively bred and popularized in the Astrakhan region.
Characteristics and description
Watermelon is considered the only berry that can be attributed to both fruits and vegetables at the same time.Often has a dark skin color, on which there are practically no stripes. Most often, small fruits grow, but they have unusually juicy yellow flesh.
In terms of taste, the variety is somewhat reminiscent of lemon, mango, and pumpkin at the same time. It is interesting that the manifestation of pumpkin properties is determined by the degree of maturity of the watermelon and belonging to a particular variety.
Yellow watermelon can be safely attributed to very juicy berries, but it cannot be called very sweet. There are practically no seeds in this berry. Among all known watermelons, the most average weight can be considered a berry of 6 kg, and the minimum - 2 kg. If you are interested in record marks, then the largest watermelon had a weight of 159 kg, and it was grown in the USA in 2013.
Varieties
The following types are considered extremely popular:
- "Yellow Dragon";
- "Golden Grace";
- "Janosik";
- "Lunar";
- "Imbar" F1;
- "Peach";
- "Yellow dollar", etc.
"Yellow Dragon" refers to early varieties, because the fruit ripens in 60 days. The berry usually has a slightly oval shape, dark skin, and orange-yellow flesh. Watermelon has a pronounced taste of honey, and its weight ranges from 4 to 7 kg.
"Golden Grace" is considered a mid-season variety, because it will be possible to take a sample from your site only after a minimum of 75 days. This hybrid has a bright yellow color inside, and also has a sweet taste that resembles sugar. A distinctive feature from the previous variety is the weight of the berry, which grows much larger (the variety allows you to get specimens up to 8 kg).There is also an excellent advantage - it is maintaining low temperatures, which made it possible to gain popularity both in Russia and abroad.
The early varieties include Janosik, which has a slightly flattened shape with a light green peel, on which the stripes are barely visible. But this did not affect the taste in any way, but, on the contrary, made the fruit even sweeter. Has a hybrid unique resistance to adverse environmental conditions. Fruits have a weight of 3 kg.
Especially popular is the variety "Lunny", which has proven itself because of the unique oval shape and striped appearance of the peel. It also has increased protection against the effects of negative natural influences and has a weight of 3 kg. Watermelon belongs to early varieties.
An interesting hybrid that has an ultra-fast fruit ripening period is Primagold F1. It manages to ripen in 40 days, and inside it is impossible to find seeds. As for the taste, the watermelon has an extraordinary and delicately sweet taste. The berry has an average weight of 4 kg.
If you want to try a peach, you can grow the Peach variety, which is characterized by large fruit sizes - up to 6 kg. The flesh has a pink-orange color.
For lovers of creating amazing moments, there is "Yellow Dollar". The variety is considered the only one among all other varieties of yellow watermelons, the peel of which is edible. The pulp has a pronounced honey flavor. There is also a unique variety "Kavbuz", which was obtained by Ukrainian breeders. The pulp of such a watermelon cannot be eaten raw - it is great for making various cereals.
Especially popular in Thailand is the "Yellow Dragon", in the USA - "Yellow Dollar", and in Poland - "Janusik".
Agricultural technology
There are several ways to grow yellow watermelon. The most common is considered to be growing directly in the garden, but you can first get seedlings from seeds, and only then transfer to the site. You should know that this berry belongs to light and heat-loving plants, so you need to choose the right piece of land where the cultivation will be carried out. We must also not forget about watering, but it is not worth constantly flooding the plant, because they are subject to critical impact from water hammer, as a result of which they burst.
Particular attention should be paid to the lash of the plant, which is considered unusually tender and thin, but this does not interfere with obtaining fruits weighing up to 6 kg.
Seed preparation
If the path of growing through seedlings was chosen, then it is necessary to first prepare a mixture of peat, sand, humus and wood ash. In this case, you need to choose the right amount of ingredients: wood ash is taken at the rate of 200–250 g per 10 kg of the finished mixture, but everything else is taken in equal proportions.
It is also important to take into account the fact that seedlings are very capricious for transplanting., so you need to grow in a separate container. Peat cups or disposable dishes have proven themselves well, but additional holes need to be made for water to escape. You should also pay attention to the volume of the mixture in which the seeds will be planted. The optimal reading is 300 ml. In this case, it is very easy and convenient to get the resulting lump.
In order to acquire seeds, you can visit a regular gardening store.
It is also recommended to leave them in warm water for a couple of hours before planting, and then move them to a solution of potassium permanganate for an additional hour, and only then rinse with water. After these procedures, the seeds will be considered ready for planting.
Sowing and caring for seedlings
In order to get a good harvest, it is recommended to start sowing seeds in March or April. The substrate is placed in specially prepared containers so that it occupies approximately 75% of the space. After that, you need to pour it with water and lay out 2 seeds each, then cover with a peat mixture. The resulting bed is covered with a film to get a quick result.
After the emergence of shoots, it is necessary to produce moderate watering of seedlings. Water is poured along the edges of the container, and the subsequent loosening of the resulting crust is also carried out. An important condition is the provision of 12-hour daylight hours. Experts recommend acquiring a lamp in advance, which will be specially installed above the seedlings to maintain this indicator.
After the seedlings have a third leaf, they can be fed a little with mineral fertilizers or liquid mullein.
Transplanting into the ground
After some time, it will be necessary to proceed to the final stage in the preparation of seedlings, namely, planting on the site. It is necessary to take into account all the factors that affect seedlings: lighting, heating, soil type. Sandy or sandy loamy soil is considered ideal, which is located on the south side and does not have shade from trees or buildings.
It is important to make a special hardening of your seedlings before planting in the ground. To do this, you need to take it out for airing in a couple of days and slightly reduce watering.It is necessary to ensure the integrity of the coma in which the root system of the plant is located.
For watermelons with colored pulp, see the following video.