Some Melon history - sign of changing tastes?

[nctomatoman]

I typically jump to the tomato section of old seed catalogs, but there are other areas that are nearly as interesting. Both muskmelons and watermelons are pretty fascinating to read through, as many catalogs carried quite a selection back in the 1880-1920 period - again, gardeners back then seemed to have a pretty good array to choose from. Perhaps because melons are not self pollinating, crossing was much more prevalent, so we seem to have fewer of the older varieties around these days - though I was pleased to see so many historic varieties carried in the SSE catalog.

For the heck of it, here are muskmelon entries from the 1886 Ferry seed catalog - along with flesh color:

Pineapple (pale yellow)
Skillmans Netted (green)
Jenny Lind (green)
Improved Nutmeg (green)
Small Green Nutmeg (green)
Improved Green Cantaloupe (green)
Bay View (green)
Casaba or Persian (green)
Japan Coral Flesh (salmon)

Note that the vast majority of melons were green fleshed cantaloupes - NOT Honeydews - like the Galia or Passport melons we know today.

Then, from the 1894 Henderson:

The following were all green fleshed: Newport, Early Hackensack, Hackensack, Montreal Market, Skillman's Netted, Netted Gem or Rocky Ford, Jenny Lind, Improved Nutmeg, Baltimore or Acme - 10 green fleshed.

These are orange or salmon fleshed: Perfected Delmonico, Banquet, Pineapple, Emerald Gem, Improved Christiana, and Miller's Cream or Osage or Princess - 6 salmon fleshed.

Note that today orange or salmon fleshed melons typically far outnumber the green ones.

The switchover can be seen in the 1924 Burpee -

Green were Early Hackensack, Montreal Market, Netted Gem or Rocky Ford, Honey Ball, Matchless, Champion Market, Honey Dew. (7)

Salmon Fleshed ones: Emerald Gem, Osage, Fordhook, Spicy, Burrell Gem, Hearts of Gold, Salmon Tint Pollock, Bender's Surprise, Tip Top, Banana, Golen Eagle, and Milwaukee Market. (12)

Finally, in the 1946 Burpee, very few green fleshed muskmelons were carried - just Netted Gem and Acme and Honey Dew (3). The rest were orange fleshed - Hearts of Gold, Bender's Surprise, Tip Top, Delicious, Pride of Fordhook, Lake Champlain, Pride of Wisconsin, New Yorker or Schoon Hard Shell, Honey Rock or Sugar Rock, Hales Best #36, Imperial #45, and Hale's Best #936 (12)

Now look at the reduction in varieties in the 1975 Burpee -
green flesh are Fordhook Gem and Netted Gem; Salmon flesh are Hearts of Gold, Delicious 51, Hales Best 36, Honey Rock and Pride of Wisconsin.

___________________________________________

As for watermelon, few of those named exist any more....

From 1886 Ferry - Scaly Bark, Mammoth Iron Clad, Early Jersey, Phinney's Early, Peerless, Black Spanish, Gypsy or Rattlesnake, Mountain Sprout, Orange, The Boss, Ice Cream white seeded, Mountain Sweet, Kolb's Gem and Dark Icing.



1894 Henderson had Cole's Early or Harris Earliest, The Boss, Cuban Queen, The Jones, Florida Favorite, Green and Gold, Hungarian Honey, Ice Cream white seeded, Jordan's Gray Monarch, Kolb's Gem, Mountain Sweet, Ruby Gold, Dixie, Seminole and Volga.

1924 Burpee had Halbert Honey, Fordhook Early, Shaker Blue or White Seeded Triumpah, Sugar Stick, Irish Gray, Baby Delight, Tom Watson, Stone Mountain, Kleckley Sweets, Golden Sweet, Perfection, Sunnybrook, Cole's Early and Mammoth Iron Clad.



1947 Burpee: Halbert Honey, Fordhook Early, Tom Watson, Stone Mountain or Dixie Belle, Golden Sweet, Kleckley Improved or Wondermelon, Northern Sweet, Florida Giant, Dixie Queen, Early Kansas, Blacklee, Black Kleckley, Hawksbury and Kleckley #6.

Fast Forward to 1975 - far less variety - Charleston Grey, Congo, Crimson Sweet, Dixie Queen, New Hampshire Midget and Sugar Baby.

Just a look through the SSE yearbook reminds us of how many of these melons are gone for good....

[Tomaddict]

Thanks for the interesting summary, Craig. The trend toward fewer varieties is not encouraging, although this is a very limited snapshot. There has been some expansion in the number of available varieties in recent years due to renewed interest in old varieties.

One comment - just because a variety is not listed in the SSE Yearbook, or in their "Garden Seed Inventory" book, doesn't mean it is lost, it just means they are not easily accessible. For some crops, SSE does have other accessions they do not list in the Yearbook, and other seed saving organizations (NSL and similar organizations in other countries) might have others.

[nctomatoman]

Agreed - I did take a spin around the GRIN database, and very few of the older melons are in there. So yes, just snapshots....too bad that some of the descriptions, particularly of watermelons, are so limited...and few photos. Specific weights, dimensions, skin color patterns, and seed color would be helpful, but there are less of those than I would like to see.

[happyscientist]

I recently discovered a few companies that specialize in may of the melons from the 19th century. I have decided to start ordering one type a year to satisfy my curiosity. I find that many modern melons are just too big (who can eat a 20 lb melon?). I am also intrigued by some of the names and discriptions.

[HappyGardener]

happyscientist,

Please share the names of those companies with us.

Thanks

[nctomatoman]

The Seed Savers Exchange commercial catalog and Baker Creek both feature older, heirloom melons.

[happyscientist]

I got the seeds from Baker Creek Heirlooms. They have a facinating catalog. I placed my first order from them this year, and the seeds arrived in less than 2 weeks.

[Jeffery_Goss]

Originally Posted by happyscientist

I recently discovered a few companies that specialize in may of the melons from the 19th century. I have decided to start ordering one type a year to satisfy my curiosity. I find that many modern melons are just too big (who can eat a 20 lb melon?). I am also intrigued by some of the names and discriptions.

But many of the old melon varieties were even bigger. Nutmeg MuskMelon is bigger than most watermelons. And watermelons were available in big sizes then too, like Cobb or Kolb Gem.

[carolyn137]

For melons and watermelons you might want to check out Sandhillpreservation.com b'c Glenn Drowns is the Curator for Cucurbits for SSE and he makes changes in his offerings each year.

He's also the source for quite a few varieties to Jere Gettle at Baker Creek who also got quite a few out of the SSE Yearbooks from time to time, as well as many other sources.

[OmahaJB]

The first year I started requesting seed catalogs, it was mainly the tomatoes and hot peppers I was interested in. But once I saw the melon/watermelon sections in Baker Creek's catalog I was hooked. Over the past two or three years I have purchased Thayer, Kansas, Collective Farm Woman, Ali Baba & Orangeglo. I have started seeds of all of them this year since I finally have some outdoor growing space. I did try growing one of them indoors a couple years ago, but knew it probably wouldn't work - and it didn't. I did get some nice long vines however.

I've noticed some gardeners here have given up on watermelon, so I'm not expecting much success with them.

I admit a couple varieties I bought from Baker Creek the word/words rare or very rare caught my eye. Seems to make it even more worthwhile to grow out if a certain variety needs attention.

Jeff

[nctomatoman]

I did fine with both muskmelon and watermelon last year - got 23-40 pound Moon and Starts, yellow flesh Moon and Stars, an old deep yellow fleshed Alabama heirloom Fusion sent me (also in the 30 plus lb range)...and Passport and Touchdown muskmelons.

This year I am going to try Noir de Carmes, Eden Gem, Tip Top, Aristocrat and Passport (again) muskmelon, and Sugar Baby and Black Tail Mtn watermelon. I find them pretty easy to grow.

[OmahaJB]

Last fall I prepared my growing space by chopping the soil up good and adding compost to it. So maybe that'll do the trick and help with a decent harvest. Can't wait to get started but don't want to make the mistake and plant outside before our last frost date, which I believe is towards the end of May. Most things are coming along slowly and need more time anyways, but the melon seedlings which I just germinated are looking strong already.

I'm hoping I get a chance to taste all these varieties because they all sound delicious, especially Orangeglo.

[carolyn137]

especially Orangeglo

*****

It's great and you should also try Cream of Saskatchewan. Don't know if I spelled that correctly, but you get my drift.

Where I live now the nights are too cold and I can't really mature what I used to just one hour south, so I swallowed deeply and grow, for instance, Savor and French Orange, which are F1 hybrids of Charantais, which is my all time fave mkelon. The hybrids do mature more quickly and the taste is very close to the real thing.

[OmahaJB]

Thanks for the suggestion Carolyn. I have seen that one in the seed catalogs and will keep it in mind for perhaps next year.

And I believe I still have a few Charentais seeds left from a couple years ago when I made a purchase from one of the seed companies. Since I wasn't able to grow them at the time, many of the seeds ended up getting traded away. I've heard that one is scrumptous. Think I may give a couple a shot. Thanks for reminding me about that one Carolyn!

Jeff

[VGary]

I acquired seed of these two melon varieties some years ago and have enjoyed growing them. The Missouri Gold Muskmelon seed being offered at Baker Creek and Southern Exposure Seed Exchange was shared with Merlyn Niedens to be grown for 2008 Description below.

I acquired the Scaley Bark Watermelon some years ago from a member at Dave's Garden. Friend Rodger Winn grew and liked it; I don't know if he plans to offer it or not. He provided the Stone Mountain Watermelon variety to Baker Creek and SESE for 2008 growing season-- See descriptions below.
Gary





Missouri Gold Muskmelon. These melons have bright orange flesh and are very sweet. The fruit is small, only 2-3 pounds. They are from 1840s and the same family, Niebrugge, has grown them. Joseph Borris, Tentopolis, IL purchased the seed in 1970s and has been growing them since.
Alice Gamewell of Eureka, MO acquired the seed from Mr. Borris in 2000. The melon has been offered previously in the Seed Savers Exchange. I shared seed with Merlyn Nieden's, Master Seed grower, last season and he grew these for Baker Creek Seed and Southern Exposure Seed Exchange. Alice is a devoted seed saver dedicated to preserving Heirloom seed/plant varieties.



Scaley Bark: 90 days. Mottled green, thick rind, medium red flesh. Rare/difficult to find seed. Mid 1800s. variety, true seed variety. (Note - a seed company had a different type seed they were promoting.)

Stone Mountain New!
A legendary commercial melon from the early 20th century. Stone Mountain was introduced in 1923 by Hastings Seed Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and went on to become one of the top commercial melons of the 1930s and 1940s, but now it is almost extinct due to mass production and hybrids. Nice-sized fruit weigh about 30 lbs, and have thick rinds that makes them excel as shippers and storage melons. The red flesh is sweet, juicy and wonderful, bringing back memories of how watermelons used to taste. A classic Southern melon that we are proud to offer, thanks to seed collector Rodger Winn. http://rareseeds.com/seeds/Watermelon/Stone-Mountain



Stone Mountain WATERMELON 1923. A commercial bestseller from the ‘30s and ‘40s, thanks to grower Rodger Winn for bringing back this old Southern favorite. Slightly oval 30-lb fruits with a dark green rind and sweet, juicy red flesh. Thick, split-resistant rind makes it great for shipping and storage. http://www.southernexposure.com/Merc...gory_Code=WMEL