Using a food thermometer. Checking the temperature of your cooked meat, poultry, and seafood with a food thermometer is the only reliable way to make sure your food has reached a safe internal cooking temperature.
Planting Watermelons. The ideal date to plant watermelons varies according to the climate of the region. To produce the sugar necessary for sweet fruit, the melons need hot weather. Seedlings should not be transplanted until three to four weeks after the last average frost date in the spring. Starting seed indoors about six weeks before planting gives you a head start when the soil is warm enough.
Ideal Temperatures. Extremes in temperatures can affect watermelon growth and development. The best daytime air temperature for growing watermelons is from 70 to 90 F. Watermelons grown where nighttime temperatures drop below 50 F lose flavor.