“Aboard the prison ship, the Scottish captain gave Lawson a wedge of watermelon that was so succulent, he saved every seed. When he got home to Georgia, Lawson planted the seeds”
Ah... a Yankee watermelon!
Always loved the ones my dad called “Rattlesnakes.”
Great story and wonderful people. Thanks for posting.
My family used to grow “Padgett Melons”. They were for family consumption not for sale. Several members of the family grew them. I have no idea whatever happened to them
Around 20 years ago I asked my Great Uncle if anyone still had the seeds and he said “Lige Padgett” did. I hated to admit to him that I did not know who he was. Now I wish I had.
They were basically dark green and almost round. Also very large.
Back then every farmer would mark the largest, prettiest melon with a scratched “X” to be used as seed. I have not eaten one since I was around 10 but they were far, far better than the ones you get in the market.
Garden ping.
Bkmrk.
“When one has tasted watermelon, he knows what the angels eat.”
Mark Twain
A lot of watermelons on NPR!
Bookmark
$10 for 12 seeds.
So plant carefully.
Yum:)
The Bradford boasted fragrant red flesh, pearly seeds and a rind so soft you could slice it with a butter knife.
Good post!
I remember thin-skinned watermelons when I was a kid in the ‘50s that came from local farms in New Jersey. Delicious!
When those farms went away, so did the good melons.
Heirloom seeds are my top priority when I can garden again.
In Houston, before air conditioning, they had (permanent) watermelon stands where the watermelons were iced, and tables were there to eat them on, it was quite a break from the heat.
They were sort of a watermelon version of the Texas icehouse, or the Houston oyster bars.
One of my favorite cartoons was in the National Lampoon. It showed a black sharecropper standing in the watermelon patch next to his shanty. He’s holding a watermelon in his hands as the watermelon says to him, “Let my people go.”
Where did that Scottish Captain get the watermelon from?
In east Texas, my PawPaw grew watermelons. They averaged about 80 pounds. They were so plentiful that we only ate the the “hearts”. haven’t found a sweeter melon since then. He fed the rest to the hogs.
ping
Thanks. $10 is a lot for 12 seeds, but I’ll try it.
Thanks! A very interesting story.