Carnival Melons Could Top 200 Pounds
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Alan Rogers (left) and Hal Vaughn are top competitors in the annual carnival contest.
WATER VALLEY – Although the Watermelon Carnival is still over six weeks away, early reports indicate that the big melons in the August 3 weigh-in could tip the scales at over 200 pounds.
“If nothing goes wrong, I really think you will see some 200 pounds watermelons this year,” Alan Rogers told the Herald Tuesday.
Rogers and Hal Vaughn are among top growers in the county and both men spend hours and hours trying to coax a giant melon out of the ground. Rogers’ claim of a 200-pounder for the carnival is bold, only two times in carnival history has a melon passed that mark. In 2006 Marty Bost had a melon that weighed 210.2 pounds and in 2019 Vaughn had a melon that weighed 202.1 pounds.
“I think Hal will probably beat that,” Rogers added about the carnival record.
Rogers’ prediction comes with a report that he has seen a melon or two that already weighs 60 to 65 pounds. He added that his biggest melon is not that big, but is growing four to five pounds a day. Both Vaughn and Rogers are trying something different after Rogers grafted the watermelon seedlings to a bushel gourd vine, giving the melons a bigger root system.
“I have six grafted and four non-grafted,” Rogers said.
Vaughn started with five granted seedlings, and is down to four after one died. He reported that he put his first watermelon on a rack in early June, a reference to a custom-built frame that keeps the melon off the ground.
“Some years it is almost July before I get one on the rack,” Vaughn reported.
Rogers and Vaughn work closely together, sharing information and tips.
“He has gone all out,” Vaughn reported about his friend. “He talks to the big boys and does what they do.”
The big boys referenced by Vaughn are some of the top watermelon growers across the nation, a tight-knit group.
Last September Rogers and his wife made a 400-mile trip to the Great Pumpkin Pursuit & Watermelon Weigh-Off at Roberts Family Farm in Kentucky. They took Vaughn’s biggest melon that was pulled well after the Watermelon Carnival, a whopper 211 Carolina Cross.
The melon placed seventh in the competition. When Rogers returned home, there was a full-briefing with Vaughn as he shared tips from some of the world renowned growers.
The Noon Weigh-In
Anticipation is also building for the auction that follows the noon weigh-in during the carnival. Each year after the winners announced and prizes distributed, the auction for the winning melons gets underway. The big spenders enjoy good-natured jockeying to see who goes home with the prize melon.
Last year the auction took an unusual twist after there was a tie for first place, meaning two first-place melons were auctioned. Hal Vaughn and Jerry Vaughn each had a melon that tipped the scale at 163.9 pounds. The winning melons brought $700 with Kim Kidd buying the first Vaughn melon for $200 and the second Vaughn melon for $500 – a carnival record.
A year earlier during the 2022 carnival Tennessee resident Shane Sanford bid $400 for the winning melon, another Hal Vaughn first place melon.
When the bidding starts this year, you can expect a strong line-up of heavy hitters that will include Mayor Tommy Reynolds. He is always in on the action and has taken home as many big melons as any carnival bidder.
The Herald has also uncovered several new bidders who plan to get in on the action this year. Dr. Harry Rayburn has made a bold claim that the winning melon will not go for less than $500. This will be the first carnival for Rayburn, co-owner of the Water Valley Dental Clinic, to attend. His interest in the auction stems from a conversation with Christy Mills, who works in his office. Mills was explaining that Reynolds is a perennial bidder, and she expected him to take home one of the big melons.
Rayburn immediately decided that the mayor may take the big melon home, but it won’t be cheap. He promised Mills that Reynolds and other bidders will have stiff competition this year.
Another potential bidder and new Water Valley resident, Brandon Presley, also plans to get in on the fun. Presley is no stranger to the carnival, attending in previous years, and promised that if Rayburn goes home with the biggest melon, it will cost him more than $500.
“I figure if the biggest watermelon weighs more than 200 pounds this year, it should cost the good dentist well over $500 bucks,” Presley said.
Rogers agrees that the big melon should bring well over $500.
“It is all for a good cause,” Rogers noted. “Money raised from the auction benefits the Chamber’s scholarship fund.”
