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Crimson Sweet Watermelon
  • Crimson Sweet Watermelon
  • Crimson Sweet Watermelon
  • Crimson Sweet Watermelon
  • Crimson Sweet Watermelon
  • Crimson Sweet Watermelon
  • Crimson Sweet Watermelon
  • Crimson Sweet Watermelon
  • Crimson Sweet Watermelon
Crimson Sweet Watermelon

Citrullus lanatus
$4.50
Description

A classic and favorite melon, crisp and sweet, medium-red flesh, mild flavor. A favorite for flavor of farmer Jordan of Family Garden, and a variety grown for years and seeds saved by local farmer legend Tommy Simmons of Bellevue Gardens in Archer, Florida. From our 2026 variety trial, tasters appreciated its juicy, silky texture, low seed burden, appealing color, and classic watermelon flavor with subtle tropical and apple-like notes.

Fruits average about 8lb. The plants have some disease resistance to fusarium wilt and anthracnose. We got our seeds from Common Wealth Seed Growers whose network of growers make thoughtful selections on their Virginia farms for flavor, sweetness, earliness, healthy foliage, tolerance/resistance to gummy stem blight. Noted for withstanding anthracnose and downy mildew.

These photos are from Tommy Simmon's version of Crimson Sweet. 
Product details
  • About 35 seeds
  • 80 days to harvest
  • Seeds sourced from Johnny's Selected Seeds (not enough from Tommy this season to provide local version)
How to grow

Sow seeds ½" deep, spacing plants 20–36" apart with 4–5' between rows. Watermelons are heavy feeders, so fertilize regularly and keep them well watered. Drip irrigation or hand watering is best, since overhead watering can encourage disease, especially in cucurbits.

These plants will sprawl and take up plenty of space, so they're not ideal for small gardens without room for the vines to ramble.

In our area, plant as soon as the threat of frost has passed—generally February through April. If possible, planting a little earlier with protection can help get them established sooner.
How to save seeds

If you are growing another variety of watermelon (Cucumis lanatus) they are likely to cross. This only really matters if you are trying to keep a variety entirely pure. If you let two watermelons cross, that's not a bad thing necessarily!

They will not cross with other melons like cantaloupe, which are an entirely different species. You can grow those at the same time with no issues.

Ideally you should save from as many plants as possible. A minimum of 5 plants is suggested but more is always better. When fruits are entirely mature you can scoop out the seeds, soak them in water overnight to lightly ferment them which removes disease and goop, and floats bad seed. You can then rinse, decant and strain a few times, discarding floating seeds and debris, leaving seeds that have sunk to the bottom to dry completely on a cloth napkin or dish towel.

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