Watermelon Farming: A Sweet Slice of Life on a Mississippi Farm

Watermelon farming is a family tradition on this row crop operation.

Pete Rutland is a lifelong farmer near Mize, Mississippi. He plants close to 2,000 acres of row crops each spring — cotton, peanuts and soybeans — and grazes around 3,000 stocker calves each winter. However, from mid-June to late-July his focus is narrowed in on an 80-acre portion of the farm — the watermelon crop. 

“We love growing watermelons. We’ve grown them on this farm as long as I can remember, and my daddy grew them before me. Watermelons are a family tradition,” said Rutland. 

Rutland and his wife, Michelle, grow around 75,000 watermelons each summer. Harvest runs about four weeks. They generally start around the 15th of June and finish between the 15th to 20th of July. During that time, they gather melons each morning, load them on a truck and get them in stores within hours. The Rutlands ship most of their melons through Sunrise Fresh Produce in Clinton, Mississippi. They also load a lot of peddlers each morning who will sell their melons at farmer’s markets and roadside stands. 

Local crews help the Rutlands gather watermelons each summer.  “It’s a labor-intensive job, and it gets more expensive each year, but we love to grow them,” Rutland said. 

Sweet spot for melons 

Mark Twain once said those who have tasted watermelon “know what the angels eat.” Many would agree that it is hard to imagine a better treat on a hot, summer day. 

Watermelon consumption and production in the United States has been on the rise in the last few decades, according to the Agricultural Marketing Resource Center. The organization estimates U.S. annual per capita consumption of watermelon is now at approximately 15.5 pounds per person. 

Mississippi is not a large watermelon producing state. With only a few dozen commercial watermelon producers, the state averages less than 1% of the U.S. market share, according to USDA data. But, residents there will argue it’s a quality over quantity thing. 

Smith County is where Rutland farms is located about an hour southeast of Jackson, Mississippi. It’s an area known historically for watermelon production and home to a long-running watermelon festival. The county is recognized by many Mississippians as producing some of the sweetest watermelons in the state. Some say the secret is in the soil. 

“There are not many people who grow melons around here anymore. It’s just so labor intensive and hard to get help,” said Rutland.  “Growing a melon is a lot of work. When people walk in a store and see a $10-$15 watermelon, that is really a cheap fruit when you consider what it costs to get it produced and trucked to the place. There’s more to it than most realize,” he added. 

Rising costs 

Like everything else, production costs for watermelons have soared this season. 

Rutland says, “The cost of everything has gone up so much this year. From the plastic we lay to the irrigation hoses, to the seed itself. Fertilizer made a big jump. Trucking and transportation have gone through the roof. We’ve had to water more because it has been so dry. Everything has gone up astronomically!”

Rutland irrigates all of his watermelon acres using drip irrigation. While Rutland’s melons got a late start due to spring rains, they’ve performed well through the dry conditions of the summer.  

“We love what we do. Farming is a lot of work, but I tell people we haven’t worked a day in our lives because we love to farm,” Rutland said.  “It’s an awesome job.” 

Editor’s Take:

From time-to-time, we like to highlight other crops that are not as mainstream as corn, soybeans, wheat or cotton. In this case, and because it is in the heart of summer, we chose watermelons. This is a perfect example of a crop that is with us every summer, and most people love it, but then it disappears for months. However, even if it is not considered a “major” crop, there are those who, like the Rutlands, love producing watermelons and take a great deal of pride in what they do. And those folks need trucks on their farms and can benefit from AgPack. That’s right! AgPack has products that appeal to all types of farmers and ranchers. Plus, if they were to use all of the exclusive rebates and discounts, the savings could amount to over $30,000! That’s all on top of your best deal. Use AgPack along with your great trucks, parts and service when reaching out to any and all farmers/ranchers in your area!