Nothing says summer like the big sweet juicy red meat of a watermelon.

For summer solstice I wanted to treat the SqueezeOC staff to the juiciest watermelon I could find. Only problem was I knew nothing about choosing one.

Nobody on staff knew how to choose a watermelon either, so we searched the Internet for some advice. Some sites said the watermelon should sound hollow when you slap it. Other sites said it should sound full. The National Watermelon Promotion Board says a sweet watermelon should be symmetrical, firm and “heavy for its size.” The NWPB doesn’t even suggest slapping the melon.

All of that info confused me so I sought the help of Carlos, an employee who was washing heads of lettuce at the local grocery store.

I wasn’t alone in my melon ignorance. Other customers heard me asking questions and a small crowd started to form around Carlos.

He knew his melons. The watermelons he helped me pick were sweet and juicy – just like my momma used to pick ‘em.

Carlos gave us these tips on choosing a watermelon.

- Slap the watermelon and listen for a deep hollow thump sound – similar to the sound of a perfectly inflated basketball. An over-inflated basketball makes a “tink” sound while an under-inflated basketball makes a “thud” sound. Find a melon that makes a hollow sound in between “tink” and “thud.”

- Look for a yellow bottom. The bottom of a melon is the part of the melon that sits on the ground when it grows. A white bottom means the melon isn’t ripe. Yellow bottoms are more ripe.

- Little holes and scars on the skin are a good thing. Bugs, which are attracted to the sweetest melons, create the holes and scars.

Here’s a photo of the scars on my melons.

(Note: To prove his point, Carlos found a small melon covered in scars and holes. It looked like a piece of elephant dung. He cut it up and the melon was one of the sweetest I ever had.)

- Lift the melon. A heavy melon is usually a sweeter melon.

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