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Your weekly look at what’s playing at our local farmers markets – and this week, beyond – and how to put those finds to work in your kitchen.
Rewind: Vincennes melon season
By Carol Bangert/For Based in Lafayette
I planned on writing about zucchini in this Market Report, but then it hit me that mid-July is prime Vincennes melon season. I wrote about Vincennes melons in a July 16, 2025, Market Report, and after re-reading it, I recognized that there was nothing new I could add to a new column. So, this week we’re rerunning that Market Report from last year.
Last week I touched base with Pam Warren of Vincennes Melons of Lafayette. Last year, Warren sold around 600 Vincennes melons and sugar baby watermelons a day, but that number has jumped considerably.
“We are selling about 1,700 cantaloupe and 1,000 watermelon a day,” she says. “They are as popular as ever, and I am so grateful for all the long-time customers that keep coming to our location.”
Warren will be setting up shop Mondays and Thursdays at the parking lot at Bennett’s Greenhouse through August.
So, here’s a look at the Vincennes melon backstory, still as fresh today as it was a year ago.
Coo coo for these cucurbits
There are many reasons I love living in Indiana. Basketball. Sugar cream pie. Sweet corn. Fireflies. Vincennes melons. If you’ve never heard of that last item, be advised that now is the time to savor this quintessential Indiana treat.
A colleague introduced me to the melons years ago when she brought one to me from her grandfather’s farm near Evansville. The taste was sublime, like a cantaloupe on steroids, and I’ve been hooked ever since, hunting them down starting in July.
To be clear, the Vincennes (or Southern Indiana) melon looks like an ordinary cantaloupe, but the flavor, aroma, juiciness and texture are other worldly – and fleeting. You’ll find them now until late August, but I’ve not seen many at our area farmers markets. Thankfully, there are roadside vendors who truck the melons (along with a variety of watermelons and other produce) to Lafayette when they’re in season. I’ve found one vendor who keeps me – and from what I can gather, much of Greater Lafayette – supplied with this ephemeral summer fruit.
Pam Warren, who runs Vincennes Melons of Lafayette, has been a regular vendor in Lafayette for nearly two decades, an operation she took over from her father, Gene Warren, a popular longtime vendor. Warren, from Dayton, gets up in the wee hours and heads to a farm near Vincennes that loads her up with a trailer full of melons – sometimes 300-plus cantaloupes and watermelons – that she parks near Bennett’s Greenhouse on McCarty Lane.
Pam Warren runs the register for a long line of customers at the Vincennes melons stand. (Photo: Carol Bangert)
I caught up with Warren with one burning question: “What makes these melons taste so good?”
She began by talking about the soil in Southern Indiana. It’s very sandy, she says, which produces better melons. Melons, like other cucurbits, don’t like “getting their feet wet,” as growers will remind you. So, it’s the soil that makes them special. Got it. Then Warren got all science-y on me and started talking about honeybees pollinating the flowers and bees stinging the young fruit. She lost me, but I was satisfied to know that there is something – Mother Nature or magic or mystery – that truly does make these melons next-level in flavor and aroma.
Vincennes cantaloupes (Photo: Carol Bangert)
Warren says a key to a great cantaloupe or watermelon is that it is not cut from the vine but falls off naturally when ripe, ensuring great texture and flavor. And that’s what you’ll get at her trailer. On any given Monday or Thursday, expect to find at least 50 people in line waiting to land a few Vincennes cantaloupes and sugar baby watermelons. Sugar babies are a bit smaller than the watermelon we see in stores, have a dark green rind and a sweet, red flesh. They are delicious.
Warren sets up shop on Mondays and Thursdays through the summer. Find out other times she’ll be in Lafayette by following her on Facebook at Vincennes Melons of Lafayette Indiana.
Easy to use and store
In my opinion, these melons need to be celebrated simply: Just cut one up and eat it. They taste equally sweet at room temperature or cooled in the fridge. Warren says you can keep the uncut cantaloupe on the counter for a few days up to a week. When it starts to bruise or the skin begins to turn orange, it’s reached peak ripening and is ready to cut and enjoy.
Warren likes to mash them up to make popsicles, and I’ve used cantaloupe in homemade sherbet. They are a perfect topping for yogurt or cottage cheese, pair well with honey and nuts, and make a tasty finger food when cut into chunks and wrapped in a thin slice of prosciutto.
Sugar baby watermelon (Photo: Carol Bangert)
Watermelon is great on its own, as well, but also shines in salads – a classic is watermelon, feta and mint (maybe toss in some sliced cucumber) – and plays well with a little spice. Try slices of watermelon sprinkled with chile powder for an interesting flavor combination. Watermelon infused with vodka or tequila makes a fun party starter, too. Warren says watermelons can be stored in a cool spot, like the basement, for up to two weeks but need to be rotated from time to time.
Take my advice and snag a few of these Southern Indiana gems while they’re here. You’ll probably see me in line. If you do, say hello!
Next time: Zucchini (I mean it this time) and colorful chiles
Other mid-July fruits and vegetables at the market include:
Herbs: Mint, oregano, basil, cilantro, sage, lavender, thyme, chives, parsley and more
Mushrooms
Potatoes
Green beans
Eggplant
Tomatoes
Zucchini, yellow and pattypan squash, squash blossoms
Blueberries and cherries, peaches
DAYS/HOURS FOR THE MARKETS
West Lafayette Farmers Market: 3:30-7:30 p.m. Wednesdays, through October. The market is held at Cumberland Park in West Lafayette with more than 50 vendors.
Lafayette Farmers Market: 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturdays, through October, on Fifth Street between Columbia Street and mid-block to Ferry Street, and Main Street between Fourth and Sixth streets.
Purdue Farmers Market: 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Thursdays, through October. The Purdue Farmers Market is held on the Memorial Mall on Purdue’s campus. This market is a concession-heavy market that allows students, faculty and staff to have lunch options in a unique outdoor setting.
Carol Bangert, editor of Greater Lafayette Magazine, has been a regular at Greater Lafayette farmers markets for more than 20 years. From May through October, she’ll scout out in-season produce at the markets and report back on fresh finds and how to use them.
Thanks, again, for support for this edition from Greater Lafayette Family Shelter. From July 20 through July 25, donate to Greater Lafayette Family Shelter’s Christmas in July campaign to support our community’s only shelter dedicated to serving families. Your gift helps parents and children stay together while they work toward safety, stability, and a new beginning. Give today at bit.ly/GLFSDonate
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The ‘market report’ is always a pleasant read. I am disappointed that you have chosen not to cover the TAES emergency services questions that go unanswered by the County Commissioners.
The ‘market report’ is always a pleasant read. I am disappointed that you have chosen not to cover the TAES emergency services questions that go unanswered by the County Commissioners.