The Málaga melon mystery...

A few weeks ago, the flower bed in front of my house (which is only about six inches wide and has been a bed of empty soil all year) was suddenly taken over by an exuberant leafy plant, with small yellow flowers and very large leaves. After some investigation, the cats decided that this new foliage was a good place to seek shade from the summer sunshine.

The plant has continued to grow, however, gradually taking over the front patio and beginning to spread into the street. After a while, I noticed small green fruit beginning to appear - fruit which grew and increased in size just as quickly as the plant itself had done. I began to wonder if some kind of courgette or zucchini was growing in my front yard. Then I stumbled upon a picture of arava melons growing in Israel, and realised that they looked exactly the same as the fruit in front of my house.

Interestingly, Arava or Arabah is a Biblical word; it's the name of the desert wilderness east of the Jordan - the place where Moses spoke to the Israelites at the beginning of Deuteronomy, before they renewed their journey toward the promised land. Arava melons come from that part of the world and can grow in relatively dry and hot conditions. A quick check on the internet showed me that several different kinds of melon have leaves that look rather like the plant in my garden.

Earlier this year, after reading of how the prophet Jeremiah told the exiles to, "Plant gardens and eat what you grow in them," I planted some tomatoes on my roof terrace (see here) as a symbol of establishing a new home in Spain. I'm now beginning to wonder if I'm also, unknowingly, growing melons in front of my house. I'm off to Scotland next week, though, so I don't know if I'll have any opportunity to eat melons, if indeed that's what they turn out to be. Watch this space for the unfolding tale of the Málaga melon mystery.