University of Missouri Extension specialists will hold an evening workshop on how to grow and market watermelon July 15 at the MU Southwest Research, Extension and Education Center in Mt. Vernon.
The event includes an hour of classroom time followed by a tour of the center’s watermelon demonstration site and an early variety taste test, says Matthew Huchteman, MU Extension field specialist in horticulture.
Appropriately, the class is being held in July, which is National Watermelon Month. “Aptly named, watermelon is 92% water,” says MU Extension horticulturist David Trinklein. This vitamin-rich thirst-quencher is part of the gourd family, Trinklein notes, adding that Mark Twain wrote that one who has tasted watermelon “knows what the angels eat.”
Participants will learn about current markets, variety selection, best management practices, integrated pest management and ways to extend the watermelon growing season in southwestern Missouri.
The session is 5 to 7 p.m. July 15, at MU Southwest Center, 14548 Highway H, Mt. Vernon.
Register at pears.io/events/mu/7850. For more information, contact Huchteman at 417-358-2158 or email huchtemanm@missouri.edu.
