Heavy Rain Affecting Watermelon Crops

WICOMICO COUNTY, Md. – Watermelons are an important crop for the local community. A season with a lot of rainfall can have negative impacts on the fruit’s health.

Commercial watermelon growers already use irrigation systems, so heavy rainfall can lead to excess water in the field, causing disease to spread in the melons. A rough growing season for farmers can mean an increase in prices for consumers.

Haley Sater, the Ag agent for the University of Maryland Extension in Wicomico County, explained how the extra rain won’t just affect your wallet, but also the melon’s flavor.

“When there is a lot of rain we tend to have lower sugar in the melons, so you have kind of lower fruit quality.” Sater says, “You can think of it as the watermelons are ‘watered down’ by the rain.”

Sater is a gardener herself. Her advice? Make sure you harvest your garden before heavy rainfall.