July Fourth fireworks might be in the rear-view mirror, but there’s still plenty of summer left to celebrate — or, for those dreaming of sweater weather, endure.
Alongside air conditioning, iced tea, ice cream and other weapons in our hot weather toolbox, there is an agricultural product that carries a lot of weight in the South and beyond: watermelon. Feted in July for National Watermelon Month, again on August 3 for National Watermelon Day and during South Carolina festivals in Hampton County, Pageland, Duncan and Florence, this grand berry gets its much-deserved due.
If the term “berry” tripped you up, here’s a simplified but scientifically solid defense
— “berry” refers to any fleshy fruit that develops from a blossom and has multiple inner seeds. Watermelons check all the boxes. (So can bananas, but that’s a rabbit hole for another time.)
Complex family dynamics
As if the world wasn’t complicated enough, here’s one more tidbit to give you pause — watermelon is both a fruit and a vegetable. A “frugetable,” if you will.
According to the National Watermelon Promotion Board, which represents growers, shippers and importers nationwide, watermelon is, botanically speaking, a fruit with origins deeply rooted in southern Africa. Many of its uses fall in line with those of other fruits as it can be used as a sweetener, juice, dessert, treat and more.
It is also a member of the cucurbitaceae family of gourds, which includes well-known “cucurbit” cousins like cucumbers, pumpkins and squash. As with watermelon, these vegetables are grown from seeds or seedlings and harvested in the same manner when mature.
In some Asian countries, watermelon gets the vegetable treatment when the rind is stewed or stir-fried. And here’s one for your “Things Russia and the Southern U.S. have in common” bingo card — folks in both places love to pickle the rinds.
While “watermelon as fruit” has strong botanical support, “watermelon as vegetable” also has surprising legal precedent. In 2007, watermelon was named the official Oklahoma state vegetable. When legislation was put forth in 2015 to strip the title, the people just weren’t having it. Public outcry saved the watermelon’s official status and prevented a major battle, like the one in 1893 when — for tariff purposes — the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that tomatoes are a vegetable and not a fruit in Nix v. Hedden.
Charleston is home of the ‘greatest’
The big green berry is big business in South Carolina. Clemson’s Coastal Research and Education Center says watermelon is the largest acreage vegetable crop grown here. The state ranks eighth in U.S. watermelon production with an estimated 600 growers, according to the S.C. Department of Agriculture. The USDA’s 2024 S.C. Agriculture Overview cited a watermelon harvest of 3,600 acres with a production value of more than $18 million.
Coosaw Farms in Beaufort County is a major producer in the state and supplies many restaurants and grocery stores in the region. Closer to home, Willie’s Roadside Market at Boone Hall Farms is a hot spot for snagging red, yellow and orange watermelons, seeded and unseeded, hauled in from local fields.
On Johns Island, third-generation Gullah Geechee farmer, Joseph Fields, assigned a portion of his 50 acres to melon-growing this year.
“We aren’t going to have as many this time around — just a few hundred — because of a few issues, like poor germination and disease,” he said earlier in July. “But we are harvesting enough to take to the markets.”
The certified organic farm grows heirloom varieties like Jubilee and the legendary Charleston Gray — which food historians call the “greatest American watermelon” cultivated in the 20th century. It was born in the early 1950s at the USDA Vegetable Lab in Charleston. Breeder Charles Andrus is credited with developing a new crop of disease-resistant, high-yield, deliciously sweet watermelon with a shelf life conducive to long-distance shipping.
Like Sumter County’s storied Bradford watermelon, Charleston Gray’s popularity eventually waned but made a comeback in recent years. Today, farmers across South Carolina are growing it again, and most new modern hybrids have some Charleston Gray in their lineage.
“It’s a seeded melon with a grayish skin,” said Fields. “But it’s also a sweet, juicy melon. I get a lot of folks asking for it by name.”
Other popular varieties grown in these parts include All Sweet, Sugar Baby, Crimson Sweet, Royal Sweet and Ice Box — all names carrying the promise of delicious summertime refreshment.
A taste of summer
Soon enough, thoughts of locally grown, ice-cold watermelon will take a backseat to cool weather treats. The time is nigh to get your fill before the produce section at the supermarket starts stocking anemic melons shipped in from far-flung places.
For a few more weeks, local menus will be offering fresh watermelon bliss. At Lenoir, you can indulge in a Coosaw watermelon salad with a basil pesto kick. Or visit The Watch Rooftop Kitchen and Spirit’s (atop the Restoration on Wentworth Street) for its sweet and savory tomato watermelon salad.
“The salad is, year in and year out, a staple of The Watch Rooftop,” said Chef Daniel Nightengale. “It really highlights the flavors of summer around the Lowcountry. The sweetness of in-season watermelon mixed with the tomatoes, peppery arugula, white balsamic vinaigrette, and feta cheese makes it a refreshing lunch or dinner favorite.”
You can eat your watermelon at The Watch and drink it, too, when you order a Watermelon Smoke-ito (Vida mezcal, mint, watermelon liqueur, lime and simple syrup).
Like a passionate affair, the most irresistible watermelon cocktails are often defined by the coupling of sweet and spicy elements. That’s the gist of the watermelon Tajín margarita at Rebel Taqueria in North Charleston. And what could be a better foil for the pit-smoked Tex-Mex offerings at Lewis Barbecue than a Sandia? This bracing, biting reprieve in a glass — a blend of tequila, jalapeño, fresh watermelon and lime — is as anticipated in summer as Lewis’s Hatch Chile Roast is in the fall.
There are many ways to experience local watermelon mania. Low Tide Brewing’s Watermelon Slushy and Sour Melon Splash seltzer are hot commodities right now. At High Wire Distilling Co., 8,000 pounds of Coosaw Farms’ Sierra Nevada watermelons were processed to produce its acclaimed watermelon brandy. And it’s always a treat when Folly Beach’s Pineapple Hut features its luscious watermelon soft-serve punctuated with a Tajín sprinkle.
Watermelon royalty
The state’s most vocal proponent of watermelon consumption wears a crown and sash. Gracen Vaughn, the 2025 South Carolina Watermelon Queen, expects to do up to 100 promotions by the time her tenure ends in January.
During an appearance at a June watermelon festival at Pee Dee State Farmers Market in Florence, the Greenville native shared dietary facts with the public about her favorite fruit.
“There’s all kinds of health benefits from eating watermelon,” she explained. “It’s a good source of vitamins A, B-6, and C as well as lycopene. And it’s an American Heart Association certified fruit so it is officially considered ‘heart healthy.’ ”
The South Carolina Watermelon Association, sponsor of the S.C. Watermelon Queen competition, has a current promotion called “Watermelon Fuels Athletes.” It touts watermelon as “smart hydration” that improves circulation, restores electrolytes and leads to better recovery than sports drinks.
“Studies found that watermelon is more hydrating than sports drinks, and it is effective in replenishing muscles after exercise,” said Vaughn who, along with other watermelon queens, distributed 60,000 pounds of cut melon to 40,000 Cooper River Bridge Run participants this past April. “It was the perfect hydration treat for runners and walkers because watermelon is 92% water.”
Watermelon, above all else, is a Southern state of mind. It’s that place where your rear end meets the cement step after a sweaty game of kickball. It’s the feel of a chilled, slippery triangle of melon placed in your hands by a smiling adult. It’s the tickle of juices making sticky trails down your chin. It’s the joy of spitting a watermelon seed a few inches further than your big sister did.
As the late, great Toni Morrison once wrote: “Watermelon is more than a fruit; it’s a time machine that takes me back to simpler days.”
Watermelon Fire and Ice Salsa
This favorite of South Carolina Watermelon Queen Gracen Vaughn is great served with tortilla chips or as a garnish for fish and chicken.
- 3 cups of seeded watermelon, cut into small cubes
- ½ cup of green pepper, diced
- 2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
- 1 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, finely chopped
- 1 green onion, thinly sliced
- 1 to 2 Tbsp. jalapeno peppers, diced (can use pickled or fresh)
Method
Combine ingredients in a bowl and gently mix. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour to meld flavors. Optional: add a sprinkle of chili powder for an extra kick.
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