Thursday, November 4, 2010

Interesting watermelon facts

Watermelon is thought to have originated in the Kalahari Desert of Africa. The watermelon was brought into America across the Atlantic oceans by African slaves.


By the 1600′s, watermelon made it’s way to Spain, China, Great Britain, and even farther beyond.

The flowering watermelon plant produces a fruit called by botanists “pepo” .

Watermelons are more than 90% water.

Watermelon is actually a vegetable and not a fruit. It is also related to the pumpkin, cucumber and the squash. Watermelon’s official name is Citrullus Lanatus of the botanical family Curcurbitaceae.

The 1996 Guiness Book of Records lists the largest watermelon as being 262 pounds!

Over 1,200 varieties of watermelon are grown worldwide.

The watermelon is very low in Saturated Fat, Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good source of Potassium, and a very good source of Vitamin A and Vitamin C.

A whole cup of watermelon contains only 48 calories.

1 comment:

  1. scientifically a watermelon is a fruit. so is a pumpkin as a fruit is technically defined as a holder of ripened ovarys. Also a tomato

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