'Sweet Siberian' Watermelon

Citrullus lanatus

Origin: Siberia

Improvement status: Cultivar

Seeds per packet: ~20

Germination tested 11/2025: 92%

Life cycle: Annual

Sweet Siberian is an old heirloom winning new converts every year. With its sweet, apricot-orange flesh, and short season, it is an ideal watermelon for northern parts of the US — and it thrives in many oother parts of the country as well. Believed to have been first offered in the US by the Peter Henderson & Co. seed company in 1898, it fell into obscurity for many decades. Glen Drowns of the wonderful Sand Hill Preservation Center in Iowa found it in the USDA germplasm system and discovered that it thrives in his short season climate. It has since become quite popular among small-scale seed companies, especially ones locted in the north. Our seed was grown by our friends Dylan Bruce  and  Skye Harnsberger of Circadian Organics in Wisconsin. Fruits range from 6 to 14 pounds, and they generally ripen in 85 days.