A Watermelon Win

By Ralph Dickerson
In 2017 Nick McCaslin decided he wanted to enter a watermelon in the local fair, and planted regular, garden-variety seed. He finished last. Determined to win the local fair, that winter he researched what he needed to do to grow large watermelons. Armed with this new information, and the proper seed to grow large melons, he planted a garden in the spring.
“I still didn’t really know what I was doing,” Nick said. “I wound up growing one that was 202 pounds in 2018.”
He won the county fair that year. Nick liked growing melons so much it quickly became a hobby. Three short years later and he is in the record books. In 2019 Nick grew a cantaloupe that weighed 67 pounds and 1.8 ounces.
“It was a new world’s record,” he said.
This year Nick beat the record he set last year with a cantaloupe that weighed 69.6 pounds. Nick said it actually weighed more when he picked it.
“It actually weighed over 70 pounds the night I picked it,” Nick said. “I could not weight it until the next morning and it lost about half a pound.”
Nick also entered a watermelon in this year’s Kentucky State Fair, and won first place. He took one up to enter in the competition, and another one just to exhibit. Both weighed over 200 pounds!
“The one that got first place weighed 258 pounds,” Nick said. “The other one weighed 209 pounds.”
So, how does Nick manage to grow such large melons? Does he use a special formula he developed to help plants grow? Does he use special growing lights? Actually he does not.
“A lot of it is seed genetics,” Nick said. “The biggest thing is the weather.”
When Nick researched how to grow large melons, he discovered typical garden-variety seed does not work. He learned only one seed grows large watermelons, and it is called Carolina Cross. Nick ordered the seed, and it is what he uses to enter competitions. Though he recorded the largest watermelon in the state this year, he actually grew one larger in the past.
“I took a watermelon up to Ohio and it wound up being the eighth biggest watermelon ever grown in the world,” Nick said. “It was 324 pounds.”
Nick said properly irrigating and fertilizing the ground is also important to help grow big melons. He said the soil should be loose and also full of organic matter. He also said experimenting with different techniques helps.
“It really is not about figuring out what to do, it is figuring out what not to do,” Nick said.
He constantly researches growing practices on the Internet, and tries out new ideas. Nick said when he tries a new idea, he does it only on one or two plants at a time. If it works, he incorporates it into his normal growing routine. If not, it does not affect his entire crop.
“You are always trying to figure out a way to squeeze out a pound or two toward the end,” Nick said.
One thing he tried this year is growing melons in a greenhouse. He grew his watermelons outside this year, but grew his world record cantaloupe in the greenhouse. Nick said this year gave him the information he needs about how to grow crops inside.
“I plan to grow my watermelons in my greenhouse next year,” Nick said. I can control the climate, the irrigation and everything.”
As expected, once he started to capture records at fairs, other growers started to contact him. Nick said he fields numerous calls every day regarding how to grow large melons.
“There is a guy from Louisiana that calls me every day,” Nick said.
Nick said he tries to help everybody that contacts him with questions about growing large melons. In addition to providing information on growing, he also sells his seed to interested growers.
“There is a little bit of a market for selling seed,” Nick said. “I sent seeds last year to Germany, Poland, France, Italy, all over Europe, parts of Asia and all over the United States.”
Though he sells his seeds, the income he brings in from selling the seed does not cover his expenses for growing the melons. It is not a moneymaking venture for him any way.
“It is competitive to me,” Nick said. “Competing against Mother Nature.”
Nick said one thing he does to help grow his melons is placing them on a special surface that helps the melons grow round on the bottom. He does this because when melons hit their rapid growth phase they grow up to eight pounds per day. With such rapid growth, it is impossible to turn them to keep them from flattening out on the bottom. Plus, trying to turn them runs the risk of causing the melon to crack open and ruining it.
Last year Nick entered a pumpkin in the Hancock County Fair that weighed over 1,000 pounds. How does he manage to move such large melons without breaking them?
“I have a tarpaulin that is made just for picking up watermelons that I use,” Nick said. “I also built an upholstered pallet that has padding under it.”
Once he places the melon on the skid, he straps the melon to the skid and then uses the front-end loader attachment on his tractor to lift the skid and put it in the bed of his pickup truck. He then straps the skid into the truck, and then takes his melons to the competition.
“I drive careful on the way there,” Nick said. “I would hate to get there and have something happen to it.”
Nick recommends anyone that likes gardening to enter the world of competitive growing. He said it is addicting.
“I don’t know where to quit,” Nick said.
Nick said though he already holds two world’s records, he plans to keep on growing melons to enter into competitions.
“I am aiming to get the world record in the watermelon,” Nick said. “It might take me a little while.”