Japan’s Square Watermelon Market: The $100 Fruits Grown in Boxes

It’s pretty common to find the uncommon in Japan, but something really strange is happening with the square watermelons that are sold there.

There’s a fondness for luxurious fruits in Japan, and some of these amazing items can cost as much as $200 each. Some of the luxurious fruits sold include Crown Melons and White Strawberries, but another fruit has caught the attention of the world because of its common quality but unusual shape. Japan’s square watermelon market is thriving and offers these specially grown fruits at much higher prices than you’d ever expect to pay in the United States.

Much more costly than you would pay

In America, watermelon is a seasonal fruit that often comes from local growers. Many farmers sell these large green melons throughout the spring and summer for as little as $5.00 each. Often, you can visit the supermarket and might find a watermelon for even less than that. It’s such a common item in the United States that you expect it to be available everywhere you go.

The special square versions of this common fruit are sold in Japan for up to $100 each. For this reason, the fruit is often purchased as gifts instead of a common snack.

What makes them so special?

The square watermelons are called Shikaku Suika in Japan, and they were developed in the 1970s by an artist named Tomoyuki Ono. You might think they would be limited to the art world, but that’s not the case. They are interesting and aesthetically pleasing with their rounded corners and flat cube-like shape, but these fruits have practicality built into the artistry behind them, which makes them even more interesting than the simple fact that they are square, and most versions of watermelons are oblong or round.

The practical side

When packing a shipment of square watermelons, less wasted space is left compared to round or oblong versions. In addition to the ease of packing and shipping fruits shaped like boxes, these fruits fit more easily inside a refrigerator, and they are much easier to cut than other shapes. You won’t have to worry about one of these flat-bottomed beauties falling off your counter while cutting them, but you do with more traditional models.

How do these watermelons get their shape?

The high price for them suggests they might come from special seeds that allow the watermelons to grow naturally into a cube-like shape, but that’s not the case. In order to grow one of these flat fruits, you’ve got to create a mold for it. This mold needs to be made of transparent plastic or glass and only needs a hole cut in one side for the stem to grow up from the dirt. As long as the box is strong, the fruit will grow to fit the box and become the shape during the growing season. The mold must be able to be taken off of the watermelon when it is time to pick it from the vine.

Are square watermelons tasty?

It seems like everyone you talk to in America has a different method for picking out the perfect watermelon. We expect these fruits to be sweet and refreshing, but you might be sorely disappointed if you bought one of the square watermelons from Japan. For $100 each, you might expect them to already be filled with vodka, giving you a massive watermelon shooter, but these fruits aren’t allowed to mature fully. They are picked early, at least by our standards, and that means they are not very tasty.

What’s the point?

The Japanese watermelons aren’t used for eating but are often meant to be a gift or decoration. They can be seen as part of hotel window displays or elaborate lobby décor. This may seem strange to Americans because watermelons are extremely common, but these square watermelons are special and unique to Japan. By picking watermelons before they are fully mature and ripe, they can last much longer as decorative objects.

Unique and fun, but only for Japan

It seems almost ridiculous to most Americans that a watermelon might cost $100 and that it’s grown as a decoration. What’s common in our country might not be quite as common elsewhere. In addition to being unusual in Japan, these square watermelons are grown specifically to take on the shape of whatever mold in which they are grown. This means they are special and interesting and have become part of the Japanese décor that you might see if you ever visit this island nation.