Rock Melons Replacing Vineyard in Sik

By Rosnani Saad SIK (Kedah), Oct 11 (Bernama) -- You can find rock melons with images of cartoon characters on its skin at the rock melon farm in Sungai Senam, here, in the northern state of Kedah, some 400-km from Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur. The unique raised patterns are made by carefully carving the skin of the fruits before it reaches maturity. Owner Mohamed Iqbal S. Habeeb Noohu, who runs the farm through his company Syarikat Excel Agrotech Sdn Bhd, is hoping that the uniqueness of the fruits would encourage the public to order “personalised” rock melons from the farm. “The carvings are currently of popular cartoon characters such as Doraemon and Mickey Mouse as well as a person’s name, well-wishes and words like “love”. “Those who would like to buy rock melons with personalised patterns on its skin would need to place their orders a month in advance as we would need time so select the fruit and carve it. Each carved rock melon costs RM50,” he said. The carver responsible for the patterns on the rock melons is 42-year-old Samphan Intharungrueang, who prefers to be called Men. According to Men, rock melons could only be carved when they were between 40 and 45 days old. "The carvings have to be carefully done using special tools to ensure no damage to the skin and flesh. After the fruit is carved, it is left on the plant until the time of harvest. The carved pattern appears raised on the skin. “Carvings are based on request and carved melons can only be picked up by customers on the day of harvest,” he said. Men developed an interest in carving rock melons after watching similar work done in Thailand. He has now carved over 50 rock melons. ONCE A VINEYARD The rock melon farm was once a vineyard owned by Mohamed Iqbal which had to be closed down in 2016 due to the complicated process of maintaining it. Mohamed Iqbal said that he was then presented with two alternative crops: chilli or rock melons. “After careful consideration, we decided to plant rock melons at the farm. "We used rock melon seeds that were imported from Japan and planted 5,000 of them using the fertigation technique,” he told Bernama. The rock melon plants were planted in July last year to replace the grape vines and are now producing a bountiful harvest. REACHING 200 TONNES Mohamed Iqbal said that the farm has produced around 200 tonnes of rock melon between July 2016 and July this year. The farm went into large scale production in January this year after the fruits produced showed improved quality, he added. "In the first six months, most of the plants grown were subjected to research and development and after over a year we are able to produce fruits that are sweeter and more succulent. "We plant an average of 30,000 to 40,000 plants monthly in stages, with a production rate of 60 tonnes to 70 tonnes a month,” he revealed. The farm is 16 hectares in size with 14.4 hectare in Sungai Senam and 1.6 hectare in Tasik Beris. However, rock melons are currently only grown in the farm in Sungai Senam. The melons are harvested four times a year. Each melon weighs an average of 2kg. “Rock melons are harvested when they are between 65 and 75 days old. As the farm produces only grade A melons, each weigh between 2kg and 3kg. "The plants require strict care as it can easily become infected with diseases. So at the moment, we are not ready yet to open the farm to the public as we did with the vineyard,” said Mohamed Iqbal. MARKETING THE MELONS Meanwhile, the Sik District Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (FAMA) Officer Rosli Muhammad Saad told Bernama that FAMA was ready to help with the marketing on the rock melons produced at the Sungai Senam farm. “Both parties have actually signed the Forward Rate Agreement. FAMA has started buying and marketing the rock melons since early this year. "We are buying at a floor price of RM2.70 a kg and if the market price increases, we would buy it according to the market price,” he said. Rosli said that it was the only farm in the district growing rock melons. FAMA has purchased six tonnes of rock melons worth RM22,000 from January to July this year. “We only buy fruits that meet the standards, namely grade A and B. So far, the rock melons at the farm meet the stipulated standards. “The fruits are then sent to operation centres nationwide, among them the Selayang (Selangor), Alor Setar (Kedah), Langkawi (Kedah) and Bukit Mertajam (Penang) wholesale markets," he said. -- BERNAMA