Watermelon is a melon, a kind of fruit.
- botanical information
- origin
- nutritional information
- selection
- storage
- preparation
- Chinese herbology
botanical information:
Botanical name: Citrullus lanatus
Common name: watermelon
Use the botanical name when ordering seeds (bulbs, etc.) or when looking up information in the library. Common names vary by nation, culture, and region, and sometimes the same common name is applied to different plants.
origin:
Origin: Africa.
nutritional information:
Nutritional information: Watermelon is between 87 and 92 percent water.
Note that watermelon and other melons should not be eaten at the same time as any other fruits or foods (not within a half an hour before or two hours after). Any melons can be eaten together.
Watermelon helps keep the liver clean and healthy.
See also Chinese herbalism below for Chinese gender and Chinese flavor.
selection:
Reason to choose organic:
Watermelons have the number 31 highest pesticide load of 45 common fruits and vegetables studied in 2006 by the Environmental Working Group and is therefore a prime candidate for switching to organic. The EWA explains, “While washing and rinsing fresh produce may reduce levels of some pesticides, it does not eliminate them. Peeling also reduces exposures, but valuable nutrients often go down the drain with the peel. The best option is to eat a varied diet, wash all produce, and choose organic when possible to reduce exposure to potentially harmful chemicals.”
According to USDA and FDA tests on commercially grown foods collected between 2000 and 2005, watermelon has a 38.5% (percentage) of samples tested with detectable pesticides, a 13.2% (percentage) of samples with two or more pesticides, a 0.6 average number of pesticides found in a sample, an average of 0.021 parts per million of all pesticides found, and 13 different pesticides found in use growing watermelons. These toxic pesticides don’t apply to organic foods.
See also Chinese herbalism below for Chinese gender and Chinese flavor.
storage:
Storage: Eat watermelon within a week (seven days) of purchase.
preparation:
Scoop out watermelon with a melon baller and then freeze the small round balls as a substitute for regular ice cubes in cold drinks.
Chinese herbalism:
Chinese gender: very yin (cold)
Chinese flavor: sweet
using 
.
