How To Choose A Watermelon

The last week of summer is coming to an end, have time to do all the planned things from the list you wrote in early spring. Of course, you won't be able to lose weight by the summer, but throwing a loud party and eating watermelons - yes.

The main thing is to choose a normal watermelon : ripe, juicy and without nitrates. It's actually not that hard to do. You just need to know a few secrets and life hacks.

When to buy

In August-September. Right now. we know that we saw watermelons in July (or in general in June), but it is not worth buying them before August. Simply because they mature only in August, that's their biology. The arguments "oh, but I took it in June, it was sweet, normal" are not suitable. We don't want to disappoint you, but there is a good chance that in June you ate a watermelon full of nitrates - they allow fruits and vegetables to ripen faster.

But since you are reading this material now, it means that you have nothing to fear: after all, the end of August is on the street.

Where to buy

The ideal place to buy watermelon is a tent next to the field where they grow. But since it is quite problematic to find such a field in Kyiv or Lviv, as well as in most cities of Ukraine, we advise you to buy watermelons on the market. You should not buy watermelons in supermarkets : they are often brought there unripe. We also do not recommend buying from roadside vendors: watermelons , like other fruits and vegetables, absorb pollen and harmful gases from passing cars.

Size

The size of the watermelon depends on its variety - some varieties are larger, some are smaller. Because here you need to be guided by the rule of the golden mean: choose a large, but not huge, watermelon . Avoid watermelons that are too small (they are usually still immature) and giants (most likely, they have been overfed with nitrates). The ideal weight of an average watermelon is from 6 to 10 kg.

Appearance

In a ripe watermelon , the stripes on the peel should be as contrasting as possible, and the peel itself should be hard and shiny. If the peel is soft, it means that the watermelon has not yet reached the desired condition: the shell hardens when the berry reaches maturity and is no longer able to absorb moisture.

Another parameter of the appearance of a watermelon is a yellow spot. This is the same side on which the watermelon lay in the field. The size of this spot should be about 5 cm for small varieties, and about 10 for large varieties. A very large spot is a reason to abandon such a watermelon . There is a possibility that it did not have enough light when it ripened, because of which it will be "cotton" in taste and not sweet.

Sound

A ripe watermelon , as a rule, makes a rather hollow sound when tapped. If you do not distinguish hollow sounds from dull sounds or for any other reason do not want to tap the watermelon , you can still squeeze the watermelon with your hands from both sides. If it crackles a little, it means that it has already reached and you can safely take it.

tail

A yellow dry tail is an excellent indicator of the desired condition. Green, on the contrary, says that the watermelon was picked too early. If there is no tail at all, you should not buy such a watermelon : perhaps it was specially torn off to hide the poor quality of the watermelon .

Scent

A pronounced fresh smell should come from the watermelon rind. If the peel does not smell at all, we do not recommend taking such a watermelon either: most likely, the striped friend was not grown in a completely natural way.