[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

I stopped eating watermelon about 30 years ago because I would get stomach ache and the trots. Other people in the family do like watermelon so I decided to grow my own. I purchased a 4 cell pack of Sugar Baby watermelons off the local building center "Dying Plants" sale rack. I planted them metal raised bed container filled with several bags of mushroom compost with an arched trellis over the bed. two survived, two died. (Infested with some small sucking bug that I sprayed with Captain Jack Dead Bug and that took care of them.

I have several watermelons growing which I supported with netted onion or oranges bags. The net broke on one of them and I went to put it back it and it separated from the vine (Stem still green). I did not think it was ripe so I brought it in and put in in a mug with the stem down in sugar water and let it sit for 5 days. I cut into it last night and found that it was pink and ripe, although a it was a small melon with a lot of seeds. We all enjoyed it and no one got sick.

This makes me wonder if the problem I had in the past involved watermelon grown on sludge or with some sort of contaminated water. Anyway, I saved the seeds and will grow Sugar Baby again! (Sugar Baby seeds are heirloom and grow true to variety provided they are isolated from other watermelons, which these were.)

A good start to August!

[FamiliarFace]

I love watermelon, but I can’t eat it anymore, nor cantaloupe or honeydew. It’s like a food allergy of sorts. Not hives, but my sinus cavities (inside my ears, nose, and throat) get inflamed and itch like crazy. It’s unbearable, even if I take Benadryl. It makes me want to chop off my head. So, I don’t eat them anymore. Even if I have a drink infused with watermelon, it does the same thing. Just not worth it for me. But, I miss them all so much!