My watermelon crop just finished up for this year. Until now, my watermelon selections have been kind of tame. I’d just pick up whatever variety was at the Feed and Seed store and stick it in the ground. Like Sugar Baby, Crimson Sweet, Jubilee. Just your average, everyday, red-fleshed, green striped watermelon.

Well no longer. There are so many flippin’ awesome watermelons out there, it seems a shame to grow the same boring varieties you could pick up at the grocery store. These three were the ones that dominated in my 2008 garden.

• Cream of Saskatchewan
• Ali Baba
• Keckley’s Sweet
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As you probably know, watermelons come in a wide range of colors. From white, to yellow, to orange, to red. This has led some people to speculate that the sun is actually a cross section of a watermelon.

Eating a white fleshed watermelon is an interesting experience. Having eaten red watermelons exclusively throughout my entire history of watermelon eating, it came as a shock that something that looked so different would taste so similar.

This particular white fleshed variety I grew was Cream of Saskatchewan. The only thing I know about Saskatchewan is that it’s way, way north of me. And that it’s probably really cold. So I wasn’t really expecting this plant to excel like it did in my hot, humid climate.

Cool little dudes, these melons. They’re nearly perfectly round, and the sharp contrast of light and dark stripes make the whole thing look like a globe of the earth. They ripen slightly earlier than most other watermelons. The packet says 80 days. It seemed a lot quicker to me, but being forgetful and stupid I forgot to write down when I planted them. How’s that for being helpful?

Either way, it’s an early melon, and great for people with shorter season. Or, as in my case, a way to prove to your gardening friends how much better you are since you’re getting your watermelons first.

The flavor was definitely unique. Maybe I’m just imagining this because of the name, but I could’ve sworn there was a hint of creaminess in the flavor. Very sweet, but with far to many seeds for very enjoyable eating. That’s great for seed spitting contests, but having matured into a reasonable adult, it getting harder and harder to find people to share this delightful past time with. That or they’re all jealous of my mad expectorating skillz.

None of them got huge. The biggest was probably a little bigger than a basketball, with most falling in the 8-10lb range. They set a lot of fruit, however, more than either of the other two varieties.

Growing ‘Ali Baba’

Ali Baba watermelons are the bomb. After great lengths of contemplation, meditation, and quiet prayer, I cameto the conclusion that Ali Baba is the best watermelon I have ever tasted. Coming in at about 20lbs, the crisp, sweet, and flavor packed red-fleshed melons were a favorite of everyone I let try it. They’re oblong-ish, looking like an over-sized, light green cucumber. Very few seeds is an added benefit. This variety is from Iraq, and is said to do great in dry climates.

Growing ‘Keckley’s Sweet’

If you’re looking to escape the whole stripey thing, Keckley’s Sweet may be the variety for you. Tall, dark, and handsome is a good physical description.

A much later variety than the other two- over 100 days for me-these guys were absolutely freakin huge. My only problem with them was it was very hard to tell when they were ripe. For whatever reason, the old standby of the dead tendril test (checking for the tendril in between the axis of vine and fruit) didn’t work reliably. I’m a terrible watermelon thumper, so the result was two huge beautiful watermelons picked prematurely. After two such failures, I determined I’d go to the river and end it all should I pick the third two soon. My presence here is indicative of the result of that resolution.

Plenty big enough, though. This one pictured with yours truly (my hands, anyway) weighed in at nearly 45lbs, and he wasn’t the biggest. See how it dwarfs my truly massive shoulders.

Anyway…. This should give you some ideas for next year’s watermelons. Two great sources for these and other watermelon seeds are www.gourmetseed.com and www.rareseeds.com

Happy Fall, everyone! I for one sure can’t wait for some cooler weather.

‘Ali Baba’ picture used with permission from http://www.gourmetseeds.com