Big Melons, Big Prizes At Carnival
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Chamber Report
By Jessie Gurner
The Watermelon Carnival may be known for music, food, fireworks, arts and crafts, old friends, family visits, class reunions, Watermelon queens, and a park full of people, but right at the heart of it all is still the watermelon.
After all, this is Water Valley. We take our watermelons seriously.
The Water Valley Area Chamber of Commerce is encouraging growers to enter this year’s Largest Watermelon Contest during the Watermelon Carnival. The contest is open to growers in Yalobusha, Calhoun, Grenada, Lafayette, Panola, and Tallahatchie counties.
If you have been watching one grow all summer and thinking, “That might be a good one,” now is the time to find out.
Entries will go on display at the park beginning at 10 a.m. on Saturday, August 1, giving Carnival visitors a chance to walk by, take a closer look, make their guesses, and enjoy seeing these impressive melons up close before the official weigh-in at noon.
This is one of those wonderful Carnival traditions that brings everybody close. Folks gather around, study the entries, talk about growing conditions, take pictures, and wait to see which melon will come out on top. There is always a little suspense, a little friendly competition, and a whole lot of hometown pride.
First place in the Largest Watermelon Contest will receive $1,000, second place will receive $500, and third place will receive $250.
Watermelon Carnival will also include the Youth Watermelon Contest, sponsored by Yalobusha County 4-H and the Chamber of Commerce. This contest is not open to general entries, as participating youth have already signed up and received packets of the same watermelon seeds to grow for the competition.
The Youth Watermelon Contest gives young growers a special place in one of Water Valley’s favorite traditions. These children have spent the summer watching their vines, waiting on their melons, and learning a little patience along the way. Youth prizes will be awarded as follows: first place, $100; second place, $75; and third place, $50.
The Chamber would love to see a strong field of entries in the Largest Watermelon Contest this year. Whether you are a longtime grower, a farmer with a good patch, or a backyard gardener who has been carefully watching a melon grow bigger by the day, this contest is for you.
You do not have to be a professional grower to be part of it. You just have to bring your best watermelon and join in the fun.
Water Valley has a proud place in watermelon history, and the Largest Watermelon Contest is part of that story. It is a chance to celebrate the growers, the land, the patience, and the good-natured competition that have helped make the Watermelon Carnival such a beloved tradition.
So growers, check your vines, pick your best, and make plans to enter the Largest Watermelon Contest at the Watermelon Carnival. Your watermelon just might be the heavyweight champion of the year.
For more information, contact the Water Valley Area Chamber of Commerce or follow the Chamber’s Facebook page.
