[2] It is grown and sold at specialty grocery stores and farmers markets and was first available from the Crane Melon Barn in Santa Rosa, California.

A ripe Crane Melon averages four to seven pounds, with a distinctive taste due to its terroir.

[3] It varies in shape from round to slightly tapered, with a netted, spotted rind and orange flesh.

Richard Hope Crane moved from Missouri to California during the gold rush in 1849, settling in the Santa Rosa region of Sonoma County in 1852.

He crossed several varieties of melons to create the cultivar.