MADURAI: Water melons have started making an early appearance along the roadsides of the city, much to the joy of the people who are battling with the daytime heat as temperatures continue to rise steadily.
Roadside hawkers have hoarded the fruits along the roads in all the southern districts. In Palanganatham here, Karuppiah is happy with the sale of the fruits. "Last month I sold apples and other fruits, but with watermelons I am making a much better profit," he said. A kilogram of the fruit is priced at Rs 15 now, and may go down to about Rs 8 when the season picks up in late March and April," he said.
Watermelons do not require much tending and give a good yield with the minimal irrigation and never fail to bring good returns, according to farmers.
T Periyasamy, a farmer from the district, said there were times when they used to start planting the seeds in late December so that the creepers, which had a life of 70 to 90 days, started bearing fruits during the peak summer months, allowing them to make good money. "But now the climate remains hot almost all through the year and there is a demand for the fruit, so we try to cultivate throughout the year and hence the early fruits this season," he said.
Padmakumari, who was purchasing a fruit for Rs 50 at Ayyarbanglow, said the fruits coming in now had a lighter colour, but that did not matter. "Do you know that this wonder fruit has 92% water and just 8% sugar and is good for diabetes and blood pressure? It is good for elderly people too," she said.
Roadside vendors are also coming up with innovations like watermelon salad and water melon sarbath, which are a hit among the college students. "It helps me to watch my weight and even the white part is good for consumption. A plate of watermelon pieces costs just Rs 5 and my friends and I are great fans of the fruit," said S Saranya of Anna Nagar.
Roadside hawkers have hoarded the fruits along the roads in all the southern districts. In Palanganatham here, Karuppiah is happy with the sale of the fruits. "Last month I sold apples and other fruits, but with watermelons I am making a much better profit," he said. A kilogram of the fruit is priced at Rs 15 now, and may go down to about Rs 8 when the season picks up in late March and April," he said.
Watermelons do not require much tending and give a good yield with the minimal irrigation and never fail to bring good returns, according to farmers.
T Periyasamy, a farmer from the district, said there were times when they used to start planting the seeds in late December so that the creepers, which had a life of 70 to 90 days, started bearing fruits during the peak summer months, allowing them to make good money. "But now the climate remains hot almost all through the year and there is a demand for the fruit, so we try to cultivate throughout the year and hence the early fruits this season," he said.
Padmakumari, who was purchasing a fruit for Rs 50 at Ayyarbanglow, said the fruits coming in now had a lighter colour, but that did not matter. "Do you know that this wonder fruit has 92% water and just 8% sugar and is good for diabetes and blood pressure? It is good for elderly people too," she said.
Roadside vendors are also coming up with innovations like watermelon salad and water melon sarbath, which are a hit among the college students. "It helps me to watch my weight and even the white part is good for consumption. A plate of watermelon pieces costs just Rs 5 and my friends and I are great fans of the fruit," said S Saranya of Anna Nagar.
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