Yes, those are watermelons. And, that one is not ripe. They probably aren't going to make it, since the cool weather greatly slows down ripening. Sorry! But the Halloween idea sounds like a good one.

The best way I know to judge if a watermelon is ripe, is to find the tendril (which comes out of the vine: it's a little curly cue "thing") closest to the melon. When it dries and turns brown, the watermelon is ready.

Okiedawn can give you more information as I think she's a bit better at watermelons than am I.

George
Tahlequah, OK

That's about the color the Moon and Stars melon that I accidentally pulled was, but it was pretty tasty and sweet then; it did have some pink to it. Later they were totally pink.

George thanks for the tip about the tendrils. It is always a guessing game for me.

I had Moon and Stars this year and the vine gave out before the melons got very big. I let the melons I had to pick sit on the table on the back porch for about a week and when I cut into them, they were pink inside. Not as sweet as I understand that they get, but edible. One that I cut into right after I picked it was yellow inside and although it had some mature-looking seed, it wasn't very sweet at all. I think someone said they don't mature any after they are picked so this might just be a coincidence, but maybe worth a try under the circumstances.

I planted my melons and winter squash late and that might be OK for the squash, but not the melons.

Oh, and yep that's a watermelon. Out in the park behind us, they have a July 4 celebration every year and this one group always brings watermelon. People spit the seed out on the ground and they germinate. They look just like your vine. Maybe the birds have planted yours? I don't know, though, those seeds are kinda big. I dug a plant up from the park this summer but it didn't make the transplant. They were just going to mow it down, anyway.

I agree with everything said previously. It isn't a wild watermelon, just a 'volunteer' that came from seed carried by birds or wildlife, or by rain or wind.

With the cooler temperatures and relatively low amounts of sunlight thanks to our perpetual cloudiness this fall, it is very unlikely they will be worth eating because they need sunlight and heat to develop sugar and flavor. The other issue is rainfall. Watermelons produce a specific amount of sugar per melon, and it differs from variety to variety. Too much rainfall waters down the flavor and gives you bland melons, so you get your best-flavored melons in periods of low rainfall and lots of heat/sunlight.

Since this melon is a volunteer, you have no way of knowing what the parentage is. If the seeds came from an open-pollinated melon, then it ought to be a good-quality melon with great flavor. However, if it came from a hybrid, the seed of the hybrid wouldn't come true and you could have anything....and likely the 'anything' would be inferior in flavor to the original hybrid.

Watermelon flesh comes in many colors--deep red, rosy red, rosy pink, true watermelon pink, dark yellow, light yellow, bright orange, pale orange, and there's some with swirled pastel flesh that is sort of pale pink, pale orange sherbet and pale yellow all swirled together. There's also some with such pale yellow flesh that it seems white.

If you want good eating watermelons, purchase seeds and plant your own to ensure you get melons with great taste and texture.

Dawn

My seed was from a friend who said she had other watermelons and wondered if they crossed. I think they may have because the moon and stars markings were just lots of stars. Only one had a good sized moon on it. I had never tasted them before so had nothing to compare it to, but it was very sweet. I still have two left sitting out side in the garden.

Glenda,

They could have crossed if she had saved the seed from a previous year, but they also could be one of the variations of Moon & Stars watermelon--there's more than just one, and some have moons and stars and some have only stars.

Some types of Moon and Stars are more round and others are more oblong. Some even have yellow flesh. There's the regular Moon and Stars (Van Doren), Amish Moon and Stars, Moon and Stars Yellow Flesh, Moon and Stars Long Milky Way and Northstar Planet and Stars (a moon and stars variation that has only stars in different sizes, but no big moons). There are other types of M&S in addition to the ones I mentioned. I've never had a Moon and Stars that didn't taste good, though, no matter the flesh color or whether it is round or oblong, or had moons and stars or only stars. That is, of course, assuming it wasn't overwatered and wasn't harvested too early.

Dawn

Also looks like you have found out yourself with your own research the 1st post on the link appears to be you

Dear friend you are getting some bad information. I like in Georgia,USA and I am a watermelon farmer. That is not a watermelon it's a citron and the ever grown wild in corn and soybean fields I GA.