Thursday, June 23, 2005
Plump, succulent, square melons
Farmers in Zentsuji, Japan, have started their annual sales of square watermelons. These novelty fruits were introduced in 2001 when the farmers came up with a clever way to force watermelons to grow into a square shape. The melons were inserted into square containers made of tempered glass while the fruits were still growing on the vine. The boxes are the exact dimensions of Japanese refrigerators, allowing full-grown watermelons to fit conveniently and precisely onto refrigerator shelves.
This year, about 800 of the melons were grown and will be shipped, mostly to Tokyo, Osaka and China. They sell for 10,000 yen each (about $90), which is 5-6 times more expensive than regular, round watermelons in Japan, but still quite a bit cheaper than the special Densuke melons that cost the equivalent of $2600 each. I now dream of nice stacks of juicy and square melons.
- posted by Woofwoof @ 9:52 PM
