Watermelon

Watermelon is the quintessential Australian summer fruit — a staple at barbecues, beach picnics, and Christmas lunch tables. Its sweet, juicy flesh is mostly water, making it one of the most refreshing things to eat on a hot day.

Most watermelon sold in Australia has bright red or pink flesh, though yellow-fleshed varieties are becoming more common. It can be eaten as-is in slices or chunks, blended into drinks, tossed into salads with feta and mint, or frozen into granita. The rind and seeds are also edible, though most people discard them — seedless varieties have become the norm at supermarkets.

Australian watermelons are grown primarily in Queensland, the Northern Territory, and northern New South Wales, with fruit available almost year-round thanks to staggered growing regions, though peak season runs from December to March.

Farmed
photograph to come — from twenty years of markets, farms and kitchens

How it's made

Watermelons are grown on sprawling vines in warm, open fields. The fruit develops on the ground over several months, fed by the vine until it reaches full size and sugar content. Ripeness is judged by the dried tendril nearest the fruit, a yellow ground spot, and a hollow sound when tapped. The melons are cut from the vine by hand, field-sorted by size, and transported whole to market.

Nutrition (per 100g)

Energy 30kcal
Protein 0.6g
Carbs 7.1g
Fat 0.1g
Fibre 0.4g Sugar 6.2g
Mass Distribution

1 melon (15" long x 7-1/2" dia) is about 4518 g — roughly 1360 kcal of this.

What it costs the planet (per kilo)

Carbon 0.68kg
Freshwater 1.07L
Land 32.5m²

Where it comes from

In the kitchen

Used as

fresh summer fruit

Goes well with
feta mint lime cucumber basil
Classic dishes
  • Watermelon feta salad
  • Agua fresca
  • Watermelon sorbet
  • Fruit salad

Keeping it

In the freezer: about 360 days.

In the fridge: 3–4 days (from date of purchase).

In the pantry: 1–2 days (from date of purchase).

Advice from Cubud’s own keeping notes — how to keep it, not a measured number.

Keeping one at home? Track yours in your cubud →

Where this data comes from

Nutrition data from

USDA

How it was calculated

SR Legacy

Full credits, licences, and methods: the sources page →

Where to next

made fromWatermelon, fruit goes well withfeta goes well withmint goes well withlime goes well withcucumber goes well withbasil shares a sourceWatermelon Rind shares a sourceWatermelon Seeds
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