Monarch of the melon patch

By CANDACE CHASE

The Daily Inter Lake

When it comes to winning the watermelon contest at the Northwest Montana Fair, Gary Barge of Kalispell has no competition - literally.

After trying tomatoes and other assorted crops, he came up with a sure-fire formula to win ribbons year after year: Grow something few others attempt in the Flathead and no one else enters in the fair - watermelons.

"For the last eight years, I got the blue ribbon," he said with a laugh.

Barge, who works in maintenance at the fair, said his main reason for growing the monarchs of the melon patch was that he just plain loves watermelon.

He also wanted to prove the experts wrong.

"It's very difficult, in this valley, to grow watermelons," he said. "People say it's impossible."

Barge recalled that his obsession got started with a watermelon he bought and enjoyed from the old Fred Meyer store. He just saved the seeds and planted them in about 1982.

"It worked pretty well," he said.

His first watermelon success whet his appetite for experimenting with other varieties. Soon, Barge was spending the winters poring over seed catalogues.

Over the years, he has tried Sugar Babies, Black Diamond, Ice Box Mickylee and many more, including some seedless varieties. The seedless posed a particular challenge.

"You need to plant a pollinator," he said.

As self-sterile hybrids, the seedless watermelons need normal seed types interplanted among them. While a little tricky to grow, the seedless varieties produce sweeter flesh and more vigorous vines with the main advantage of no hard seeds to sort out.

At the risk of unearthing some competition for next year's contest, Barge divulged that starting early gives the grower a fighting chance to avoid mini-melons. He starts his seeds in February in grower soil mix.

In March, he transplants his seedlings outside into a homemade greenhouse. Barge came up with a simple house by stretching plastic over an old swing set.

He prepared the soil by mixing in horse manure and Miracle-Gro. Watermelons thrive in sandy fertile loam that is well-drained but retains moisture.

"It's the same as you do for cucumbers," he said. "April through June, I use a soaker hose."

He added that watermelons need lots of room. Small bush types need three feet between plants while giant ramblers require up to 12 feet.

Barge followed his formula early this spring, once again producing those impossible watermelons by fair time.

On Tuesday, he picked his smaller but well-formed Mickylee for entry into the watermelon category. His 20-plus pound Black Diamond was entered in the largest fruit category.

As a side benefit of his fair job, Barge cruised through the Expo Building to check out any potential competition. Once again, none appeared.

Wednesday afternoon, Carole McAtee, judge and superintendent, picked up the Mickylee for appraisal. She checked it for color and shape, then knocked on the melon.

"It sounds hollow - it sounds ripe," she said. "He didn't want me to cut it."

McAtee brings to her judging 20 to 25 years of serving as the agriculture/horticulture superintendent. In those years, she has seen a lot of produce scrutinized for imperfections such as insect damage or mechanical injury.

With no competing watermelons, the judge didn't take long to make a decision on the watermelon winner for 2007.

"I'll give it a blue," McAtee said, crowning Barge the king of the watermelon class for the ninth year.

She also awarded his hefty Black Diamond a blue ribbon as the largest fruit, making Barge's watermelon triumph even sweeter.

But it isn't the glory of a string of blue ribbons that drives Barge to travel as far as Spokane in search of new seeds to plant in his watermelon patch.

"It's the challenge," he said with a smile.

Reporter Candace Chase may be reached at 758-4436 or by e-mail at cchase@dailyinterlake.com.