Melon

High school (ages 12+)
Food & Cooking

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/melon

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the scientific name (true melon)?Cucumis melo
2. What is the ancient domestication?Evidence suggests cultivation began thousands of years ago in Africa and Asia
3. Why do melons have a hard rind?Melons are a special type of berry called a pepo, and the hard rind protects the sweet, juicy inside.
4. How do melons grow?Melon plants have vines that spread across the ground. Bees pollinate the flowers, and after pollination the fruit swells into a melon.

Cucurbitaceae: A diverse plant family characterized by climbing or trailing vines and often large fruits, including melons, gourds, and squashes.
Pepo: A botanical classification for a berry with a hard, leathery rind and a fleshy interior, exemplified by melons and watermelons.
Cultivar: A plant variety that has been developed through human intervention, such as selective breeding, for specific desirable traits.
Monoecious: A botanical term describing plants that bear both male and female reproductive organs on the same individual plant.