Scientists Successfully Grow Watermelons in Antarctica: Bringing a Taste of Summer to the Cold Pole

Russian scientists created the right conditions in the Vostok station greenhouse to grow juicy watermelons. This is a significant horticultural achievement considering that outside the research station – an area of ​​Antarctica known as the Cold Pole – temperatures can drop to -89.2 degrees Celsius.

According to the research of Renner and colleagues (2021) is Northeast Africa, namely Sudan, the place where the progenitor of the modern watermelon most likely originated. Although this region of the world is very warm to hot most of the year, the people who live or settle in areas like Antarctica thought that watermelons should also grow there. And now they are.

In a joint research project, researchers from the Agrophysical Research Institute, the Russian Antarctic Expedition of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI) and the Institute of Biomedical Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences developed an environment in which they could increase the air temperature and humidity to create the right conditions for the growth of juicy watermelons.

In the future, the team also wants to grow other sweet treats such as strawberries, blueberries and blackberries.

The group specifically chose two varieties of early-ripening watermelons because of their excellent taste and can withstand the low air pressure and lack of oxygen in the greenhouse. The seeds were sown in a light layer of soil and conditions in sunlight were mimicked.

According to a statement from the AARI, the researchers were tasked with pollinating the flowers of the watermelon manually, as there were no insects to fertilize the plants. Exactly 103 days after sowing the seeds, the researchers found eight “ripe and sweet fruits” spread across six different plants. According to the Russian Geographical Society, each melon weighed about 1 kg and was 13 cm in diameter.

Further cultivation of crops in Antarctica

Already in 2020, the Russian researchers have other edible plants such as parsley, cabbage, dill, arugula and basil. In the future, the team also wants to grow other sweet treats such as strawberries, blueberries and blackberries.