| When Israeli
agronomists and nursery experts want to see beautiful watermelon fields,
they go to visit those of the "professor", Ashkar Fathi, from the Arab
village of Taibe. Together with his son, he has nurtured a market that
includes the top food chains and co-ops in Israel.
Ashkar has been growing and marketing
watermelons for over 30 years and he is considered one of the best in
the country.
As experts stand in the field, listening
to him, one can sense both intuition and experience, combined with the
soul of the academic and a willingness to experiment. |
This year,
Ashkar grew Zeraim Gedera's seedless watermelon variety "Crispy Sweet"
for the first time on 25% of his land.
He was very impressed with this new
variety because of its excellent size, internal quality and good
germination. As a result, he plans to increase the acreage of "Crispy
Sweet" to 100% next season. |
