Watermelons: Food for pharoahs, feast for a family of poor

Watermelons grown 5,000 years ago in Egypt, loved today for cheap price, health benifits

ISLAMABAD: The watermelon - sweet juicy, veggie-fruit, widely believed to be first harvested some 5,000 years ago in Egypt - remains a low cost summer staple in South Asia.

Though it is still an affordable family feast, watermelon could not attain that much admiration and significance it earns in some other countries.

The most prestigious place this overgrown produce is in Americas and Japan. It is the State of Oklahoma's official state vegetable, whereas, Americans celebrate August 3 as National Watermelon Day.

Japanese, giving it greater recognition dedicate a day as World Watermelon Day. Japanese have another hallmark achievement of developing square watermelons for the ease to shelve them in refrigerators and racks.



Knowingly, declared as a vegetable-fruit, it has another distinctive feature for rarely being cooked like a curry in traditional cooking vessel. "It would be funny experience to cook this item in a pip-kin on fire with added hot Asian spices. Not sure what will be an outcome but it will be a fun for the diners," remarked Chief Chef Shahid Khan at Gun & Country Club, when asked did he ever cook watermelon. He termed it impractical to deal it like a vegetable for being so watery and sweetie in nature.

National Agricultural Research Centre Farms Planning Director Shamimul Sibtain said that watermelon plants are drought-tolerant and this ability ensures its maximum growth. Watermelon vine loves heat, and needs a long and warm growing season of at least 70 to 85 days. He said country's most tasty variety is produced in Thal's hot and sandy soil where day time temperature touches 50 degrees in summer. The seedlings of watermelon sprout at 35 degree centigrade in which seedlings of most of the other plants could not survive.

"This veggie-fruit” he said, “not only endures this hot and humid climate but also drags and soaks over 92 per cent of water with no competitor on earth having Adam's ale to this extent," he added.

Called a fruit of angels by Mark Twain its different varieties across the globe have some very fascinating names reflecting public infatuation with this specie. Among them a few are Queen of Hearts, King of Hearts, Millionaire, Crimson, Trio, Nova, Desert King, Tender Gold, Yellow Baby, Yellow Doll, and Black Diamond.

School Health and Nutrition Supervisor Imrozia Waheed sharing some nutrition facts of this summer specialty, said it is rich in vitamins, minerals, potassium, magnesium and anti-oxidants. Vitamin deficiency was a biggest challenge for children and women of third world today and World Health Organization was combating to overcome it.



She said this fruit in our country is in abundance and an effective natural food to fight this deficiency. She said it was a season's blessing when sweating dehydrates body and it was a great hydrating agent. The nutrition expert recommended its use for kidney, liver and abdominal health.

Imrozia said scientists with years of research managed to discover that this magical diet for being rich in vitamins and minerals and low in calories was a divine sanction for cardiovascular health.

The medical scientists also discovered that Watermelon was among the best dietary sources of lycopene, an antioxidant linked to both the prevention and treatment of prostate cancer.

An 85-year old practicing doctor Ghulam Hussain said it would be quite unbelievably interesting for our younger generations born after 80s that the fruit remained a must item in annual urs and lok melas (Religious and Cultural Festivals) celebrated across the country. No devotee or visitor was supposed to get back home without a melon in his hands, he added. He said It was kept for hours in a water well with a special net pocket, tied with a rope to make it a cool family treat due to absence of refrigerators.

According to Guinness World Records, the world's heaviest watermelon was grown by Chris Kent of Sevierville, Tennessee in 2013, weighing in at 350.5lbs or 158.9kg.

According to reported statistics China is the leading watermelon producer with 66% share followed by Iran and Turkey. After going through this a bit of informative episode it is hoped that social media wizards in our country will also initiate a campaign with a slogan "Tarbooz Ko Izzat Dau,” (give respect to watermelon), the same it enjoys in some other parts of the globe.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 7^th, 2018.