ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Any other summer, this would seem improbable. But a man has grown a record-breaking cantaloupe in Alaska.

The fruit craves heat and struggles in rain. But Alaska has had unusually hot and dry weather this summer.

Scott Robb plans to enter his 64.8-pound melon in the Alaska State Fair in Palmer, Alaska, next week.

The official weight of the melon is 1.3 pounds heavier than the current world record. Guinness World Records still needs to certify it -- a process that can take up to six months.

Robb started the cantaloupe in a greenhouse in April and hand-pollinated it, then surrounded it with mousetraps to deter rodents.

He is a perennial winner of giant produce competitions, holding awards at the Alaska State Fair for the biggest cauliflower, celery, kale, kohlrabi, rutabaga and watermelon.