Muskmelon

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Melon

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta
Class:	Magnoliopsida
Order:	Cucurbitales
Family:	Cucurbitaceae
Genus:	Cucumis
Species:	C. melo

Binomial name

Cucumis melo
L.

Muskmelon refers to the many cultivars of Cucumis melo, and is one of the broader group of fruits grown and traded as melons. It is an accessory fruit of a type that botanists call a false berry. It was first cultivated more than 4000 years ago (circa 2000 BC) in Persia^[1] and Africa. The varied cultivars produced have been divided into multiple cultivar groups.

1 Types
2 Nutrition
3 See also
4 References
5 Footnotes
6 Gallery
7 External links

[edit] Types

The subspecies Cucumis melo melo includes numerous interfertile cultivar groups (sometimes as varieties) classified as follows:

Cantalupensis group includes the European "cantaloupe" with skin that is rough and warty, not netted. This melon is not cultivated in North America. It is grown in South Africa, where it is called the spanspek.^[2] Listed sometimes as Cucumis melo cantalupensis.

Chito group is the "garden melon"'. Also known as the "chate" of Egypt, "mango melon", "lemon melon", "orange melon", "apple melon", or "vine peach". Referred to sometimes asCucumis melo melo chito.

Conomon group is the "oriental pickling melon"; it is also known as the "Sweet melon", "Chekiang melon", or "Chinese white cucumber".

Dudaim group is the "apple melon" (although see Chito group above); it is also known as the "fragrant melon", "pocket melon", "Queen Anne's pocket melon", "vine pomegranate", "plum granny", and "dudaim melon". Listed sometimes within Cucumis melo melo var. chito.

Flexuosus group is the "Azerbaijanian cucumber"; also known as the "snake melon", "serpent cucumber", "snake cucumber", "serpent melon", or "Oriental cucumber".

Inodorus group includes "honeydew melon" (aka "honeydew"), "crenshaw melon", "casaba melon" (aka "casaba"), "winter melon", "American melon", "fragrant melon", or "Oriental sweet melon". These have smooth rinds and do not have a musky odor. It is the third most popular type of melon, after the watermelon and cantaloupe. Honeydew has a smooth, white rind and sweet green flesh. When eaten, the texture is similar to a reticulated cantaloupe, but the flavor more subtle and sweeter. Classified sometimes as Cucumis melo inodorus.

Makuwa Group is the "Japanese cantaloupe".

Reticulatus Group includes the "netted melon", "winter melon", and ""North American" cantaloupe". Other common names are the "nutmeg melon" and "Persian melon". "Muskmelon" is also sometimes used to refer to this type in particular.^[3] These are the most popular melons cultivated in commerce. They are classified as Cucumis melo melo var. cantalupensis by some authors. This group includes the recently rediscovered Montreal melon.

Samarkand melon vendor in the 1910s.

The culture of honeydew and cantaloupe requires a good deal of readily available water for irrigation, and long, hot summers. These melons are susceptible to fungal infections by fusarium and verticillium wilts, as well as a bacterial wilt transmitted by the cucumber beetle.

Various kinds of melon seeds are edible, and are sold as snacks in shops, by names as kwaci and kwatji. For this purpose, they are dried and often salted. The names come from Chinese 瓜子 guāzi; they are a very common snack food in China.

[edit] Nutrition

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Cantaloupe melons are a good source of potassium, vitamin A and folate. They are helpful to the kidneys and are a useful laxative. North American cantaloupes are the most beta-carotene-rich of all melons and are also high in vitamin C.

Honeydew melons contain few nutrients and modest amounts of potassium but almost no vitamin A.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

Mabberley, D.J. 1987. The Plant Book. A portable dictionary of the higher plants. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 706 pp. ISBN 0-521-34060-8.
Magness, J.R., G.M. Markle, C.C. Compton. 1971. Food and feed crops of the United States. Interregional Research Project IR-4, IR Bul. 1 (Bul. 828 New Jersey Agr. Expt. Sta.).