The third melon from this year’s series of crosses had a shape somewhat like a Sugar Baby, round and slightly oval, with coloration similar to a Congo.

It clocked in at a hefty 17lbs (much larger than a Sugar Baby) and was beautiful inside.

Note the hints of orange around the edges of the red. It’s possible that this cross also has some of the orange watermelon genetics mixed in from the 2021 and 2022 growing seasons.

As for the flavor, it was superb. I would rank it with the best watermelons we have ever tasted.

There was a floral note to this melon, reminiscent of lychee fruit. That was surprising. I’ve never tasted anything like it in a melon. Almost a rose-petal aroma in the taste. The flesh was sweet and crisp, quite a ways into the rind, which got progressively tarter as it whitened.

Flavor: 10/10

This melon was better than the pink melon (Ezekiel’s Landrace 2023 Melon #2). Incidentally, Melon #1 of the season was strangely underripe and not worth reporting. As the season continues, it will be interesting to see what we get. Some will be purebred heirlooms, since Ezekiel added more seed lines to the mix this spring, and others will be crosses from the last couple of years. Those are the ones wereally find interesting.

Next year, they should all be crosses and that will be exciting – but we’re already having lots of fun. Plenty more melons are waiting out there in the garden for us to discover and taste-test.