as their giant counterparts. Join organic farmer Jenna Rich as she discusses how to plant, grow, and care for it.


I hadn’t grown watermelons until this season, and ‘Sugar Baby’ happened to be the one I ended up with. A neighbor had saved seeds from a previous year and asked me to start some for her in my greenhouse. I was happy to oblige and even happier when she offered me any extras as she only wanted four plants.

Once summer was in full gear, I transplanted two seedlings into their own fabric grow bag and set them alongside my Birdies metal raised beds. Before long, their vines intertwined with my tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers. It was a beautiful jungle of all my favorite summer crops, and the melons performed well in their bags. After noting signs of full maturity, I harvested the first of several, and let me tell you, they did not disappoint.

I recommend this delicious heirloom variety if you have space for a mini watermelon. Let’s learn how to plant, grow, care for, and enjoy ‘Sugar Baby’ watermelons.
What Are ‘Sugar Baby’ Watermelons?
This variety is an easy-to-grow, juicy, compact watermelon, an excellent option for individuals or young families. While mostly water, this heirloom also contains antioxidants, potassium, Vitamin C, carotenoids, and lycopene. It’s prolific, and our community loves it for its high yields, delicious flavor, consistency, and overall good health. ‘Sugar Baby’’s high sugar content gives it its standout sweetness.

Appearance
This adorable melon is small, round, deep green externally, with gorgeous dark red internal flesh. There may be some faint lighter green striping on the outside. The seeds are roundish and medium brown, and the rind is minimal. Each fruit weighs eight to ten pounds and is seven to ten inches in diameter, and each plant produces two to five melons.

Native Area

‘Sugar Baby’ watermelons are native to Africa and was introduced to the United States in the 1950s. It quickly gained popularity for its size, flavor, and heirloom status.

How to Grow
These are sensitive to transplant, but with extra care, they’ll succeed without issues. ‘Sugar Baby’ watermelons are known for being low-maintenance.

Sunlight
Place plants where they’ll receive eight to ten hours of direct sunlight daily. Sunlight promotes ample flower production and stimulates pollination, and full sun will ensure their flesh is super sweet.

Water
Watermelons are named as such because they contain high water levels and require a lot of water to produce their massive, sweet, and juicy fruits. Water them one to two inches weekly if they have not received that much rainfall.

Water at the base to ensure it reaches the roots. The soil should be consistently moist but not soggy.

Soil
Watermelons thrive in rich, loamy soil high in organic matter, which should remain moist throughout the growing season.

The pH is ideally between 6.0 and 6.8, but they will tolerate anywhere between 5.0 and 7.0. A soil test before planting will help determine if you need to acidify your soil.

Mulch
Short-season growers in northern regions may add heavy straw mulching or silage tarps (black side up) around their melons and pathways to warm the soil temperatures. Mulching adds the bonus of suppressing weeds and fertility to the soil as it breaks down.

Climate and Temperature
Watermelons prefer air temperatures between 70 and 85°F (21 and 29°C). Cooler temperatures may stunt their growth and cause mushiness, and they will not tolerate a frost. Cover new transplants with a row cover to protect them from spring temperatures.

Cool spring soil temperatures are not great for watermelon production. If the spring is unseasonably cool, start indoor seeds later to avoid rootbound seedlings.

Fertilizing
‘Sugar Baby’ watermelons are heavy feeders, requiring high amounts of nutrients, water, and composted organic matter. A weekly fish emulsion foliar feed helps them thrive. You may side-dress with compost halfway through the season.

Give a nitrogen boost before flowering occurs, when tendrils appear and vines lengthen. Switch to fertilizers that are heavier in potassium when you remove the insect netting, and flowering begins.
Harvesting
Around 75 to 80 days after transplant, begin monitoring for shriveled curly-Qs near the melon as it’s one of the tell-tale signs that it’s ready for harvest. At this time, the fruit is receiving no additional nutrients from the plant. There may also be a light green or yellow spot on the exterior where it sits on the soil surface and is tough to the touch.

Gently tug on the fruit. If it releases itself without much effort, this confirms your suspicion, but if it fights back, leave it for another day or two.

Pruning
When thinned to the proper spacing, no pruning is necessary. However, when the season is nearing its end and cooler nights have arrived, some growers snip the growing tip so the plant can focus its energy on ripening the fruit on the vine.

Propagation
‘Sugar Baby’ watermelons can be directly sown or started indoors three to four weeks before the last frost.