My Grandmother's and Pharaoh's favorite

Editor's note: This is a reprint of a column from 2005.

July 25, next month, would be my Grandmother's 113th birthday.

She was a unique and memorable lady. She passed away just weeks before her 98th birthday in 1990. I always associate her birthday with her favorite summertime delight, watermelon.

You could rarely visit her home this time of year without being offered some of that delicious fruit. She always seemed to have several on hand, ice cold and ready to eat. It is one of those timeless memories that you just never forget.

I looked up some information about the watermelon, and there were several things I did not know. First, the watermelon is really a fruit. I did not understand all of the terms, but it appears that it is not actually a member of the traditional melon family.

The watermelon is thought to have found its origin in the Kalahari Desert in Africa. While it is now grown all over the world, it seems that the watermelon actually thrives in a desert climate.

The Pharaohs liked watermelon and it was a regular part of their diet around 5,000 years ago. If it was good enough for the Pharaohs then it had to be good enough for me and Grandmother Hart too!

The watermelon gradually spread into Europe. In the era of exploration and colonization, the Spanish brought it to the New World with them. American Indians in the southwest began raising watermelons as early as the 1500s.

Now, I am sure that we will get a lot of arguments over who raises the best watermelons. Since they are raised all over the world there are many places that have great one's to be sure. From my own experience however, Vernon County, in particular the southern district, has always produced the very best.

When I was very young, we used to always go to the Sheldon Picnic, held during the month of August. The multi-purpose building always had several lengthy tables, filled with watermelons. These melons were entries in a contest to see which were to be judged the best. I am not exaggerating when I tell you that many of those watermelons commonly weighed in close to a hundred pounds. I could hardly believe my eyes when I saw how huge they were.

I hope I don't offend any of the other growers from those long ago contests, but only one name stands out in my memory of those days. Gordon Hornecker lived on BB Highway about a mile after it turns west from I-49 just south of Nevada. His home was located not far from the Long Acre one-room country school, where my mother taught early in her career.

Gordon raised these great watermelons, and my family, in particular my Grandmother, always purchased several of them each summer. I don't remember which was his favorite variety, but I do remember they were big, red inside, juicy, and sweet. I think he was one of the first to try to raise seedless watermelons, but as to that I can only surmise, my memory is fading in direct correlation to my hair loss!!!!

In the early '70s, before I went back to finish college, I worked as a concrete truck driver, for a couple of years at the Pohl Ready Mix Plant. One of the superintendents there was Bob Houdeschell. I soon discovered, that Bob had the same magic touch as Gordon Hornecker, when it came to raising Vernon County watermelons. He lived a few miles to the west on BB Highway, not far from where Gordon Hornecker lived. It makes me wonder, if there must be something in the soil of that area that makes it so productive for watermelons?

In late July and on into August each summer, Bob would bring one of his famous watermelons to work each morning. They would always be about 30 or 40 pounders, and they were a special variety called "Black Diamonds." This variety of watermelon is so named because of its coloring. It is solid dark green, so dark that its outer coloring approaches almost a black tint, when fully ripe. Folks there is nothing in this world quite like the taste of one of those Black Diamonds. When they are good and cold it is beyond my mere words to describe.

We would keep one really cool until after the mid-afternoon when the deliveries had settled down. Then we would all gather around for a slice of heaven. The memories of Bob's ice-cold melons is still fresh in my mind, after more than 40 years have passed.

During high school football, we used to have one night practice under the lights, during August two-a-days. I don't know who paid for them, but somebody brought a stock water tank out to the field, filled with ice water and floating watermelons. If you have never seen about 60 players who are tired and thirsty devour ice cold watermelons, then you have never really seen watermelons consumed in a tried, true, and proper manner! Not the seeds, nor juice spilling down our chins, came close to slowing the pace of our gorging.

Yes Vernon County has some of the greatest watermelon growers I have ever known. I am sure there are others who think theirs are better, but they could only be as good, definitely not better.

Whether it was enjoyed on my Grandmother's front porch, filled with summertime guests, enjoying our favorite seasonal fruit, or Pharaoh and his court eating the same fare in their palace, watermelon is without a doubt the delicacy of royalty.

Can't you just taste an ice-cold slice? Maybe it's a good time to check out our local growers at the Farmers Market, and enjoy one of natures very best offerings.