Introduction: In summer, watermelon is the people's first choice for a healthy and delicious fruit. It relieves summer heat, quenches thirst, and aids in weight loss, playing various roles. However, people are most afraid of accidentally picking a bad watermelon. How can you pick a watermelon more reliably? Let's take a look with the editor.
1. Observe Color and Listen to Sound
A watermelon with a smooth surface, clear patterns, distinct veins, and a yellow underside is a ripe one. A watermelon with a fuzzy surface, dull luster, indistinct spots and veins is unripe. If you tap the watermelon with your fingers and hear a "thumping" sound, it's ripe. A "dull thud" sound means it's not yet ripe, and a "hollow puff" sound means it's overripe.
2. Check the Stem
A green stem indicates a ripe watermelon. A blackish-brown stem with fallen fuzz, a brittle and curved shape, and withered, yellowed tips at the tendrils means it was picked before it was ripe. If the stem is already withered, it's a "dead vine melon," and its quality is poor.
3. Inspect the Head and Tail
A good watermelon is symmetrical at both ends, with a deep navel and stem scar, and full flesh around them. A melon with a large head and small tail, or a pointed head and thick tail, is of poor quality.
4. Compare Elasticity
A thinner rind that is easily dented with a finger is a sign of a ripe melon. If the rind cracks when pressed with a fingernail and the flesh is soft, it's overripe.
5. Weigh by Hand
A watermelon that feels light in your hand is ripe. One that feels heavy is unripe.
6. Test Specific Gravity
If it floats in water, it's ripe. If it sinks, it's unripe.
7. Check Size
Among the same variety, larger is better. The size of a watermelon is somewhat related to its ripeness. A very large watermelon is not the first to ripen, but it is definitely not the last. It usually ripens in the middle of the season. Therefore, before most watermelons are on the market, it's better to buy medium or small ones as they have a higher chance of being ripe, while large ones are less likely to be ripe. By the same logic, when watermelons are widely available, it's not suitable to buy small ones; you should buy large ones. Small watermelons might be "dead vine melons" from early-maturing varieties (early-planted watermelons).
8. Observe the Shape
A watermelon with a neat and symmetrical shape has grown normally and is of good quality. A deformed one has grown abnormally and is of poor quality.
9. Examine the Rind
For "Jingxin No. 1," the dark green net-like stripes on the light green rind and its nearly spherical shape are its trademarks. Then there's the "Black Beauty," a watermelon with a dark green, almost black rind and a slender figure, which is also a good choice. In addition, there are other distinctive varieties currently popular on the market, such as "Chunhongyu" and "Jinxiaofeng."
It should be noted that the quality of a watermelon is fundamentally determined by its genetics. The varieties mentioned above have been cultivated and selected by horticulturists over a long period. From the moment their seeds germinate, they have a higher probability of producing watermelons with higher sugar content and more juice.
10. Observe the Vine
Look up and down from the vine where the stem is attached. If the vine is naturally withered, it indicates that the watermelon's growth has naturally ended and it is ripe.