2022 | How to Care for Yellow Watermelon

The yellow watermelon is a variety of watermelons that has yellow flesh due to natural mutations. This variety of watermelons is native to Africa but now grown for commercial usage in different parts of the world. In most of the American and European markets, you might have already seen these types of watermelons as well. The yellow watermelon looks like an ordinary watermelon from outside, but inside you will find a surprisingly yellow flesh.

This yellow flesh of the watermelons is as tasty, healthy, and nutritious, as red flesh, the only difference between them is their color. The Red Watermelon has a pigment called “lycopene” that gives it the natural red or pinkish color, but in the yellow watermelon varieties “lycopene” is absent that is why these watermelon varieties never gain their natural color.

There are different varieties of yellow watermelons that include:

• Yellow Crimson: This variety of the yellow watermelon has a similar shape and color on the outside but inside its flesh is completely yellow and it tastes very sweet.
• Desert King Yellow: This is the variety of the yellow watermelon named after its desert origin, it has a taste like an orange cantaloupe but the texture like a crispy watermelon. They are considered one of the thickest and sweetest yellow watermelons.
• Yellow Doll: Yellow Doll is an early maturing Watermelon variety that only weighs 5 to 7 pounds, their size is also among the smallest but they are sweetest among watermelons.
• Buttercup: This is a seedless variety of yellow watermelons that means their flesh does not contain any seeds in it, so if you like to eat watermelons without seeds they are also an option for you.
• Yellow Flesh Black Diamond: They are similar to the red flesh black diamond watermelons in shape, size, and weight but they taste better and their flesh is more crispy as well.

There are many other varieties of the yellow watermelons available nowadays as well but these are the most common yellow watermelon varieties.

Health Benefits of yellow watermelon

There are a lot of benefits of the yellow watermelon that are proven scientifically, these benefits mostly come from the fact that it is a low-calorie food and is mainly composed of the water and natural flavor of sugar.

Here are a few benefits of eating the yellow watermelon:

• The yellow watermelon flesh mostly consists of the water, and this is how it helps you stay hydrated all day during the summer.
• The yellow watermelon is a low-calorie food and is helpful to the people who are looking forward to losing their weight.
• The yellow watermelon contains a lot of vitamins and essential elements that are beneficial for the human body.
• Some studies also point out that it can also help prevent cancer, yellow watermelon contains some elements that help prevent cancer and many other diseases of the human body.
• One of the major benefits of eating yellow watermelon is that it helps in improving cardiac health.
• Eating the yellow watermelon can help you lower the inflammation and can also help you release the oxidative stress.

Apart from these, there are thousands of other benefits of eating the yellow watermelon as a snack.

Historic Cultivation of Yellow Watermelon 

Botanical experts believe that the cultivation of the yellow watermelon started before the red watermelon in Africa almost 5000 years ago. But generations of selective cross breedings in search of a perfect fruit led to the discovery of red watermelons.

Red Watermelons were easy to grow in the other parts of the world, that is why they became more common than the yellow watermelon. The red watermelon we see nowadays is a result of cross-breeding while the yellow watermelon is the natural watermelon that existed in the past.

What is the Difference Between Red Watermelon and Yellow Watermelon

The basic difference between these two is the difference between their color, one is red and the other is yellow. The red watermelon contains a pigment called “lycopene” that is responsible for the red color of the watermelon but the yellow watermelon lacks this pigment that is why its color is yellow.

One more difference is in their taste, the yellow watermelon mostly tastes like honey, it is thicker and sweet while the red watermelon tastes sweet but not as the yellow watermelon. Another difference between these two is that the cultivation of the yellow watermelon started way before the cultivation of red watermelons.

The yellow watermelon is considered the natural watermelon while the red watermelon is a result of centuries of selective breeding for the perfect texture, smell, and taste of the watermelon flesh. The yellow watermelon is considered healthier than the red watermelons.

What are the similarities between Yellow Watermelon and Red Watermelon

Both of these are the varieties of the same species called “Citrullus Lanatus”, and they have a lot of similarities as well. Both of these have a similar shape and color on the outside, they also have similar line patterns as well.

Nutritionally both of these contain similar amounts of vitamins A, C, and water. The flesh in both varieties is composed of 98% of the water. Both have seeds and seedless varieties as well. Their vines take almost a similar time of 80 to 90 days to mature.

Both Red and yellow watermelon varieties like to grow under the full sun and in a soil that is capable of quickly draining itself after being watered. Both of these have similar lighting and water requirements.

How to Water Yellow Watermelon  

The vines of yellow watermelon have similar water requirements as the red watermelon. These vines are watered based on their age, for example, there is a different requirement of water during the early days of the plantation when the vines grow small watermelons, and when there is a time for watermelons to ripe.

• When the plants are small, you need to keep the soil moist, mostly these are the hot summer days and sandy soil quickly dries, that is why you need to water them more often. Avoid watering using the sprinklers. Only provide them enough water to let the soil soak.
• When the plants start growing small watermelons and flowers, and the watermelons are smaller in size, you can still follow the same method for watering it. The more water you provide during these days the more fleshy and watery your yellow watermelons will be. That is why during these days it is advised to keep the soil soaked most of the time.
• When watermelons start growing bigger and start ripening, stop watering them. This will help you make your watermelon fruits sweeter. If you watered your plant when the watermelons are ripening your watermelons will have more water and will be less crispy and less sweet.

Lighting and Temperature needs for Yellow Watermelon 

Yellow watermelons are grown in the hot regions mostly, and they thrive under the full sunlight. Before you plant the seeds of yellow watermelon, you need to choose a place where they can get enough sunlight all day long. If you have a place in your garden that faces sunlight for most of the day (that is not under the shade of other trees), plant them in such a place. The more sunlight they vines get the more juicy and sweet watermelons will be. That is why it is advised not to cover the place where you have planted yellow watermelon wines.

Yellow watermelon is originally from the hottest regions of the world and they are only grown in the summer regions, they are not cold hardy and they can not survive in the cold area and cold temperatures. They are mostly grown in hot places and hot climates. They can be grown in the cold regions where the temperature during the summer season can get higher than the 68 to 77°F (20 to 25°C), below this, the vines will not survive.

Soil needs for yellow watermelon (yellow watermelon)

yellow watermelon is from the desert lands of Africa, they like sandy soil to thrive and properly grow. They need soil that can quickly drain the water. Mostly this type of soil is also used for the succulent plants but yellow watermelon requires even more sand content in the soil. Apart from the sand, you can use the mixture of perlite, pumice, and natural plant fertilizer to create a perfect soil for your yellow watermelon vines.

This type of soil helps the roots to quickly settle in the ground and help collect more water for the fruit (yellow watermelon). The water that roots will get from the soil, will be used in making the watermelon juicier and create a perfect taste and balanced flesh.

Fertilizer for Yellow Watermelon 

The fertilizers are very important for the proper and faster growth of the yellow watermelon vines and this is also important for early fruiting. If you want to get a bigger sized yellow watermelon from your vines, you need to provide them with fertilizers to boost their growth.

Type of fertilizer

Different types of fertilizers are used for these purposes, on most of the watermelon varieties, these fertilizers are used based on soil analysis. They include phosphorus-based fertilizers, nitrogen-based fertilizers, and calcium-based fertilizers. These fertilizers are used in different cases for the yellow watermelon.

How to Fertilize

Fertilizers should be used according to the soil analysis, but if you don’t have a proper soil analysis you can use the following standard guidelines.

• If the soil is mixed with the compost and other organic matters, you don’t need to add fertilizers on the time of plantation but if you have not added compost, you can then add fertilizers when planting the seeds.
• Nitrogen-based fertilizers should be used in the early days of the plantation, once the plants start growing they need more nitrogen from the soil and you can provide them with a nitrogen-based fertilizer. Follow the usage guidelines that are provided with fertilizers.
• Once your vines start to grow flowers and small fruits (almost a month after planting), you can then add phosphorus and potassium-based fertilizer. This will boost the growth rate of the plant and will also increase the number of flowers on each vine. More flowers simply mean more fruits.
• Exports advise that if you are using the nitrogen-based fertilizer, you should mix it with the soil, as if you don’t mix it within the soil, most of your nitrogen will be converted into the vapors and will be lost.
• To get instant results from the fertilizers, you need to provide water to the vines after giving them fertilizer. This helps the fertilizers slowly dissolve and become a part of the soil so that the roots of the yellow watermelon can intake the fertilizers while intaking the water from the soil.

Schedule for Fertilization

There is no properly defined schedule for fertilizing the yellow watermelons. Most of the time a schedule is made with the help of soil analysis. Experts advise that you should add fertilizer into the soil before the plantation of the seeds.

Once they start sprouting and come out of the soil, you can add more fertilizer at that time if you think it is required based on the condition the yellow watermelon is in. You can also fertilizer when the flowers start converting into the yellow watermelons. Once your yellow watermelons start growing bigger, it is advised to stop further fertilizing.

How To Grow Yellow Watermelons 

Yellow watermelons are grown with the help of their seeds, so if you want to grow yellow watermelons you need to sow these seeds into the soil, once you have planted their seeds, you need to water the crop and wait for it to sprout. If you have provided it the conditions it required to thrive, such as proper watering, full sunlight, soil that fits its growth, and fertilization., the vine will grow fastly and will provide better watermelons. 

Once planted the seeds sprout in a few days depending upon the moisture and humidity in the soil, once the seedlings come out of the soil, they need to be protected from grazing, and provided with proper care. After the 60 days, most of the vines start growing watermelons, and these small yellow watermelons slowly turn into the big sized yellow watermelons.

Frequently Asked Questions

Question: Is yellow watermelon real?

Answer: Yes, yellow watermelons are a real thing and they are available in the markets as well. In reality, the watermelons were yellow in the past but due to selective breeding for a perfectly juicy and crispy flesh, smell, and taste, generations of growers have modified it into the red watermelon.

Question: How to plant yellow watermelon seeds?

Answer: You can plant the yellow watermelons from the seeds as you plant the red watermelons from the seeds. All you need is to take healthy seeds and bury them under the soil and provide them water. Keep the soil moist and wait for them to sprout. Once they start growing you can add fertilizers for faster growth. The vines of yellow watermelon will start growing the watermelon after almost 50 days of their plantation, these small yellow watermelons will turn into the bigger yellow watermelons.

Question: Is yellow watermelon genetically modified?

Answer: No, the flesh of watermelon turning into yellow is a natural modification. Almost 5000 BC ago, watermelons were used to be yellow not red, and they were made red with the help of selective breeding. In Africa, yellow watermelons still grow naturally and their seeds are being used to grow them worldwide.

Question: Do yellow watermelons have seeds?

Answer: Yes, yellow watermelons have seeds inside them, most of their varieties are with seeds and only a few are seedless. You can easily find the yellow watermelon varieties with the seeds in the markets where yellow watermelons are available. 

Question: How do they make yellow watermelons?

Answer: yellow watermelons are not genetically or artificially made watermelons, it is a natural variety of the watermelons that existed almost 5000 years ago. The Yellow Color in the flesh of watermelons is due to a natural mutation. This natural mutation causes the yellow watermelon to lose the “lycopene” (a color pigment that makes the red flesh of a red watermelon).

Question: Are yellow watermelons good for health?

Answer: Yes, yellow watermelons are good for health. The flesh of the yellow watermelon is made of water, sugar, vitamins, and essentials that our body needs for proper functioning. Eating yellow watermelons also helps keep ourselves hydrated during the hot days of summer. Eating yellow watermelon is also considered beneficial for people who are suffering from heart diseases. yellow watermelon flesh contains elements that are found to help prevent cancer.

Question: How does yellow watermelon taste?

Answer: yellow watermelons taste very sweet and the same as the red watermelons. But yellow watermelons flesh is thicker and tastes sweeter than the red watermelons. The taste of the yellow watermelon can be different for each variety. Each variety of the yellow watermelons has its taste, smell, and crisp.