The palace garden demonstrates its excellence in a new edition of the competition, featuring a pumpkin weighing 293.8 kg and a bunch of 9.6 kg grapes.
Los Palacios and Villafranca celebrated a new edition of the traditional Grape, Watermelon and Pumpkin Competition this Friday, an event that each summer highlights the quality of local horticultural production. Organised by the Municipal Delegation of Agriculture and Livestock, the competition brought together more than thirty participants at the Manolo Mayo Restaurant, showcasing extraordinary specimens that generated great excitement among locals, farmers, and sector representatives.
The mayor, Juan Manuel Valle, accompanied by the delegate of Agriculture and Livestock, Jesús Condán, and other members of the Municipal Corporation, presided over the event. Valle emphasised the pride it brings to the locality to showcase the quality of its products to the world and acknowledged the hard work of farmers, stressing that agriculture is a fundamental pillar of the local economy.
In the Layrén grape category, Sebastián Gómez retained his title with a bunch weighing 3 kg and 783 grams, followed by Encarna Amuedo Melgarejo (3.273 kg) and Álvaro Domínguez González (2.747 kg). Gómez also triumphed in the Emparrada grape category with a bunch weighing 9 kg and 641 grams, while Francisco Amuedo Melgarejo (8.309 kg) and Ana Caballero Martín (7.627 kg) completed the podium. It is worth noting that the municipality holds the Guinness World Record for the largest bunch of grapes in the world, achieved in 2018 with a weight of 10.120 kg, also presented by Gómez.
In the black watermelon category, Álvaro Domínguez González took first place with a specimen weighing 28.5 kg, ahead of Aurora Rodríguez Caballero (28 kg) and Nicolás Domínguez (26.5 kg). In the striped watermelon category, Rosa Rodríguez Caballero won with 32 kg, followed by her sister Aurora María Rodríguez (29.5 kg) and Álvaro Domínguez (28 kg).
The pumpkin competition was one of the main attractions. Aurora María Rodríguez Caballero claimed first prize with a specimen weighing 293 kg and 800 grams, a piece that required a special scale as the usual one could not support it. Her sister Rosa Rodríguez secured second place with 271.8 kg, and Álvaro Domínguez González came third with 146 kg.
The mayor congratulated the winners and all participants, highlighting the presence of different generations. “The important thing is to participate,” he noted, emphasising that behind the competition lies many hours of work and a significant impact on the local economy. Valle recalled that the agriculture of Los Palacios has gained international recognition, mentioning that “the tomato from Los Palacios has been talked about in England, Brazil, Portugal, France, and all over Spain.”
The competition, which combines tradition and innovation, reaffirms the municipality's commitment to its land and farmers, looking to the future without forgetting its roots.
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