Is it ready yet??

Sugar Baby Watermelon - is it ready yet?

For at least the past month, I have been watching and waiting in anticipation for the day to come when I could harvest my first Sugar Baby watermelon of the season.  


For the last month, the melons looked deceivingly ready to harvest - dull skin, large and heavy for its size, the rind was hard to "poke" with my fingernail, and the hollow sound that everyone talks about was loud and clear. It is no wonder that last week it crossed my mind (several times) to take a risk and try harvesting one of the watermelons.  

But in the end, I decided to hold off the harvest and wait for the tendril closest to the fruit to begin to dry up (the surest signal that the watermelon is ripe and ready to harvest). I did not want to crack open a large melon to find a light pink or even white interior.  


I am happy to report, my wait has paid off! Ringing in at 12.2 lbs, this watermelon is a heavy weight for its type. I was expecting a personal size watermelon, maybe 5-8 lbs. Either way, this size is much more reasonable for two people than the Crimson Sweet watermelons I grew last year (which rang in at well over 25 lbs each!). AND, it tasted delicious warm. I can't wait until tomorrow to taste it cold!

Ripe Sugar Baby Watermelon