CANYON COUNTY, Idaho — A Canyon County farm is in the heart of watermelon season, shipping thousands of melons each day to grocery stores across the Northwest.
Nielsen Brothers in Parma has been farming since 1947, but watermelons are a relatively recent addition, the farm began growing them about 17 years ago.
"We started the farm here in 1947 when my great-grandfather, Harold Lawrence Pace, moved up here after the war and bought the farm," farm owner Nathan Nielsen said.
Because the farm plants in stages over several months, harvest season stretches from about mid-July through the end of September. A crew of about 30 people is dedicated to producing the farm's seedless watermelons.
At the height of the season, crews bring thousands of melons in from the field every day.
"We're usually moving about four to five semi trucks a day, which is about 90 to 10,000 individual melons per day that we're harvesting and shipping out," Nielsen said.
Once the watermelons arrive at the packing shed, they're sorted by size and prepared for their next stop. From there, they're loaded onto semi-trucks and shipped to grocery stores throughout the Northwest.
But Nielsen said producing a quality watermelon starts long before it reaches the packing shed.
"It does start in the field, and we have to provide sufficient nutrition through fertilizer and water irrigation," Nielsen said.
WATCH: A look at what harvest looks like at Nielsen Brothers in Parma.
Growers also have to be careful not to overwater. Too much water can dilute the sugars and affect the sweetness of the melon.
Idaho's summer sun presents another challenge for the crop.
"The melons will burn in the sun, scalds them, and it can ruin the fruit if it's severe enough," Nielsen said.
Crews in the field are trained to leave behind melons that don't meet quality standards, and another round of quality checks takes place in the packing shed.
Nielsen Brothers says its watermelons have become a recognizable part of the farm's identity.
"So it's kind of a fun thing to be able to be doing something different and unique than what you traditionally see grown here in the Treasure Valley of Idaho," Nielsen said.
For more information on where to find Nielsen Brothers watermelons, visit the farm's website.
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