Wmelon

WATERMELON (Citrullus lanatus) BREEDING HANDBOOK
Gabriele Gusmini
Raleigh NC, 2003
Abstract
The watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is one of the most important horticultural crop for fruit
production in the U.S. The watermelon is a monoecious species and therefore a
crosspollinated crop of the family Cucurbitaceae and does not manifest important levels of
inbreeding depression or heterosis.
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Public and private breeders are developing leading varieties since the 1,800's (Wehner et al.,
2001; Whitaker and Jagger, 1937) and lot of progress has been done particularly for
qualitative traits. However, there are not very detailed informations available about the
genetics of this plant even though several genes have been identified. Priorities for the future
should be the understanding of the mechanisms of inheritance and the variance components
for several important traits, along with the development of new breeding strategies that can
hold the gain obtained in selection for qualitative traits broadening at the same time genetic
variability in the cultivated watermelons to allow the breeders to improve the quantitative
traits of this crop.
Biotechnology has not played a central role yet for the improvement or the genetical
understanding of the watermelon but should be better used as a tool to short-cut the tipically
long timing of every breeding program (gene sequencing, gene overexpression and/or
silencing, transformation techniques, molecular markers assisted selection, etc.).
This report summarizes some important informations on the genetics and the breeding of the
watermelons and presents some new possibilities for its improvement.
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Introduction
The watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is a major vegetable crop in the U.S. with an average
production in the period 1999-2001 of about 39 million cwt/year. The major center of
production was Florida (in 1999-2001 about 8.9 million cwt/year), even though the state with
the major acreage in the same triennium was Texas (about 37,000 acres/year) (U.S.D.A.,
2002).
The watermelon has high lycopene content in the red-fleshed varieties: 60% more than
tomatoes. Lycopene has been classified as a useful component of human diet for prevention
of heart-attacks and certain types of cancer (Perkins-Veazie et al., 2001).
In the U.S. the market is more oriented now toward smaller watermelons, either round or
elongate, preferentially seedless. The watermelon can have flesh of different colors, even
though red is the most common. The market recently has welcome yellow and orange
varieties, particularly in processed watermelons. In other countries , i.e. China, small and
yellow watermelons are preferred to the red ones; in Europe, however, the comsumers still
want red and big fruits.
The american market is nowadays divided equally between seeded and seedless types but the
request for seedless on the market either for fresh and processed products is increasing.
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Taxonomy (G.R.I.N.)
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Cucurbitales
Family: Cucurbitaceae
Subfamily: Cucurbitoideae
Tribe: Benincaseae
Subtribe: Benincasinae
Genus: Citrullus
Species: lanatus
Varieties: lanatus
citroides
Table 1. Related species of agricultural interest and their capability of intercrossing with
watermelon

Species Chromosome Level of Capability of
Number (2n) Relationship Intercrossing

Citrullus lanatus 22 - -
Cucurbita pepo 40 Family No
Cucurbita maxima 40 Family No
Cucurbita mixta 40 Family No
Cucurbita moschata 40 Family No
Cucumis sativus 14 Family No
Cucumis melo 24 Family No
Luffa spp. 26 Family No

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Table 2. Intercrossablewild related species of watermelon (Mohr, 1986)

Species Chromosome Life Sex
Number (2n) Cycle Type

Citrullus lanatus 22 Annual Monoecius
Citrullus colocynthis 22 Perennial Monoecius
Citrullus naudinianus 22 Perennial Dioecious
Citrullus ecirrhosus 22 Perennial Monoecius
Citrullus rehmii 22 Perennial Monoecius

The species listed in table 2 are all intercrossable and seeds have been recovered and
successfully germinated in all possible crosses (Mohr, 1986). So far only Citrullus
colocynthis has received attention as a source of valuable germplasm and has been included
genetic studies (Levi et al., 2001a).
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Biogeography
The watermelon is thought to be native from Africa (Maynard et al., 2001; Mohr, 1986;
Whitaker and Jagger, 1937) but the distribution of the PI accessions present in the U.S.D.A.
collection after the recent updates of the past 10 years shows that it is possible to identify at
list other three important centers of germplasm diversity: South-Asia, Turkie, and Middle-
East.
Table 3. Distribution of hypothetic centers of diversity for watermelon based on the origin of
the PI Accessions present in the U.S.D.A. germplasm collection at Griffin, GA

Until now the germplasm has been collected mainly in Africa, China, Middle-East, South-
Europe, and slightly in America. The major problem of the collection of watermelon
germplasm is the political instability of the area where it is widely present in the wild:
political reasons, for instance, limited exploration of most countries in Africa and Asia
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(Vietnam, Laos, and Cambogia); protectionistic politics adopted from the middle-eastern
countries limited also the collection of germplasm in that area. For sure future collection
should concentrate in the asian countries since now they are politically stable and much more
open toward international cohoperation and exchange of germplasm. Africa is becoming
even more dangerous to explore and the most stable countries are generally not willing to
allow export of their germplasm.
Breeders can find germplasm directly in the U.S. by request at the U.S.D.A. repository in
Griffin, GA.
Table 4. Watermelon germplasm held at the U.S.D.A. repository in Griffin, GA

Species Variety PI Accessions

Citrullus lanatus lanatus 1,435
citroides 134
Citrullus colocynthis 23
Citrullus naudinianus 0
Citrullus ecirrhosus 1
Citrullus rehmii 1

In addition to the U.S.D.A. collection of PI Accessions, several cultivars have been released
by public and private breeders and are accessible on the market (Maynard, 2000; Wehner,
2002).
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Table 5. Watermelon cultivars present in North America (Wehner, 2002)

Africa 8 - Breeder: Rev. Rush Wagner, Old Umtali Mission, South Africa. Parentage:
selection from accession sent by Wagner to Layton. Characteristics: round fruit, flaccid
sweet red flesh, early maturity. Resistance: anthracnose. 1937.
Angeleno - Parentage: possibly from Chilean watermelons or Chilean Black Seeded
cultivar.
Black Kleckley - Breeder: Iowa. Parentage: Jugoslavia 7, Iowa Bell, Kleckley Sweet.
Characteristics: darker rind than original Kleckley Sweet. 1945.
Black Seeded Klondike No.3 - Breeder: Dept. Vegetable Crops, University of California,
Davis. 1933.
Brownlee - Breeder: Mr. Walker, Florida. Parentage: Leesburg x Hawkesbury.
Characteristics: thin rind, good internal quality, sweet crisp red flesh with hollow heart or
white heart. Similar: Kleckley Sweet. 1941.
Buist Little Gem - Breeder and vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 75 days to
harvest; earliest cultivar; fruit nearly round, small in size, 12 to 17 lb.; skin dark green
stripes on gray green background; flesh pinkish red, very firm, sweet, delicious eating.
Buttercup (4505) - Breeder: Dr. Warren Barham. Vendor: D. Palmer Seed Co.
Characteristics: tiger stripe, bright yellow flesh. Adaptation: most watermelon growing
areas around the world. 1999.
Calhoun Gray - Breeder: North Louisiana Experiment Station, Calhoun, LA. Parentage:
Calhoun Sweet x Charleston Gray. Resistance: anthracnose, fusarium wilt races 0 and 1.
1965.
California Klondike - Parentage: selection from Klondike. Similar: Klondike. 1933.
Calsweet - Breeder: Mr. Layton, California. Parentage: (Miles x Peacock) x Charleston
Gray, the same parents as Allsweet, Crimson Sweet. Characteristics: 21 x 18 inch size,
20-30 lb., wide indistinct stripes, bright red flesh. Resistance: fusarium wilt.
Carolina Bradford - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 85 days to harvest; a fine
shipping cultivar having a very tough, elastic rind; fruit large, 25 lb., oblong, deep green
irregularly striped with a darker shading; flesh dark red, fine grained and sweet; seeds
creamy white with some slightly mottled.
Carolina Cross #183 - Breeder and vendor: Burpee Seed. Characteristics: gigantic fruit, 200
lb. size, oblong fruit shape, light green rind with narrow dark green stripes, 100 days to
harvest.
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Charleston Gray No.133 - Breeder: Mr. Stevenson, India. Parentage: Charleston Gray
selected for higher wilt resistance. Characteristics: thinner rind; otherwise similar to
Charleston Gray. Resistance: fusarium wilt. 1961.
Colebrook - Breeder: E.M. Meader. Parentage: open pollinated selection from Korean
cultivar Shingyamato. Characteristics: round, 10 lb. fruit, thick rind, striped pattern,
bright red flesh, small brown seeds. Similar: Merrimack Sweetheart, Yankee Queen,
Sweet Sugar. 1948.
Cole's Early (Harris' Earliest) - Breeder: Coles Seed Store, Pella Iowa. Vendor: Robert
Buist Co. Characteristics: 80 days to harvest; extra early; a favorite in the North; for
home market; fruit small size, 15 lb, short, nearly round, dark green stripes irregular on a
light green background: rind tender; flesh light red, sweet and delicious; seeds black.
1892.
Conqueror - Breeder: Orton. Parentage: Eden x citron. Characteristics: insufficient fruit
quality for commercial production; used to develop wilt resistant cultivars with
acceptable fruit quality. Resistance: fusarium wilt. 1908.
Cooperstown (XP 4590339) - Breeder: David Dean. Vendor: Seminis-Asgrow. Parentage:
F1 hybrid. Characteristics: seedless with mottle stripe on green background, oval fruit
shape, medium to large size. Resistance: anthracnose, fusarium wilt. Similar: Tri-X-313.
Adaptation: North America. 2000.
Corporal (PS 56595) - Breeder: Manual Rosa. Vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-Petoseed.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: seeded, all sweet type, late, wide strips, large fruit.
Similar: Sangria. Adaptation: U.S., Mexico. 1999.
Cuban Queen - Breeder and vendor: W. Atlee Burpee. 1881.
Dark Icing - Vendor: D.M. Ferry. 1888.
Delta (PS 36594) - Breeder: Jose Gomez. Vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-Petoseed.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: Royal Sweet type, crimson Sweet stripes, oblong,
18-25 lb. strong plant, vigorous, wide adaptability. Similar: Royal Sweet. Adaptation:
United States. 1998.
Dixie Belle (Stone Mountain) - Breeder: H.G. Hastings, Atlanta, Georgia. Characteristics:
thick, tough, dark green rind, 17 x 14 inches, 35-40 lb., red, sweet flesh. 1924.
Dixie Queen (White-Seeded Cuban Queen) - Breeder: Johnson. Vendor: Stokes Seed Co.
Parentage: Cuban Queen x Kolb Gem. Characteristics: round fruit 30-40 lb., pink flesh,
white seeds, narrow dark green stripes over light green rind; 90 days to harvest; popular
with home gardeners, roadside markets, truckers and shippers; fruit oblong or nearly
round; rind thin, but tough; flesh crisp and extremely sweet with very few seeds; seeds
white and small. 1890.
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Dulce Verde (4506) - Breeder: Dr. Warren Barham. Vendor: D. Palmer Seed Co.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: solid dark green rind. Similar: Peacock.
Adaptation: most watermelon growing areas around the world. 1999.
Early Kansas - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 80 days to harvest; a fine shipper;
fruit nearly round, 40 lb., light green with wavy stripes; flesh bright red sweet and tender;
seeds reddish brown.
Early Resistant Queen - Breeder: Iowa. Parentage: Early Market Queen x Hawkesbury.
1945.
Excel - Breeder: D.H. Gilbert of Monticello, Florida. Characteristics: poorly fixed hybrid.
1906.
Falcon (RS 56395) - Breeder: Manual Rosa. Vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-Petoseed.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: seeded, Allsweet shaped watermelon, early
planting, wide stripes, large fruit, high yields, no hollow heart or bottlenecks.
Adaptation: United States and Mexico. 1999.
Fandango (SSC 46072) - Breeder: New Avenue Seeds. Vendor: Shamrock Seed Co.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Similar: Summer Sweet 5244. Adaptation: all watermelon
growing regions. 1999.
Far North - Breeder and vendor: Fischer Seed Co. Parentage: Sugar Bush x Peacock.
Characteristics: dark green fruit, 6-8 lb., bright red flesh, black seeds; many off-types.
Fenway (XP 6279) - Breeder and vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds. Parentage: F1 triploid
hybrid. Characteristics: seedless Sugar Baby type, high yield, round to slightly oblong
fruit shape, dark green rind with very dark green faint mottled stripe, rind has shown
excellent resistance to sunburn. Similar: Sugar Baby (except seedless). Adaptation:
southeastern U.S. 2001.
Florida Favorite - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Parentage: Rattlesnake and Pearson.
Characteristics: 80 days to harvest; excellent for the home garden or home market trade,
not for long distance shipping; fruit large, 25 lb., long with round ends; light green with
mottled stripes of dark green; rind fairly tough; flesh dark red, crisp and sweet; seeds
white.
Georgia (152185) - Breeder and vendor: Seminis-Petoseed. Parentage: F1 hybrid.
Characteristics: small Crimson Sweet type, strong vine, early to medium early maturity;
fruit about 10-13 lb. with small broken dark green stripes. Similar: Crimson Sweet.
Adaptation: Guatemala, South America. 2000.
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Georgia Rattlesnake - Characteristics: 90 days to harvest; an excellent shipping melon
popular for its size, productiveness and eating qualities; fruit very long, large, 25 to 30
lb., light green, irregularly mottled with dark green stripes; striking appearance; rind very
tough; flesh bright scarlet, crisp and sweet; seeds all white with black tips. Adaptation:
southern U.S. 1870.
Golden Anniversary - Parentage: Wikara x Kleckley. Characteristics: sweet.
Gray Monarch (Long Light Icing) - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 85 days to
harvest; a large melon mostly adapted for home gardens; fruit 25 lb. cylindrical with
blunt ends, a beautiful light gray green faintly mottled darker; rind thin and tender; flesh
red, sweet and delicious; seeds white.
Green Seeded Citron - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 95 days to harvest; bred
exclusively for preserving; fruit round, 10 lb., striped alternately with dark and light
green. Flesh clear white and very solid. Seeds glossy olive green.
Halbert Honey - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 85 days to harvest; a fine, large
prolific melon; sweet flavor; for home use and nearby markets; fruit 30 to 35 lb.,
cylindrical with blunt ends, dark glossy green with fine veins; rind tender, flesh rich red,
extending clear to the rind; seeds white with black tips.
Harris' Earliest (Cole's Early) - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 80 days to
harvest; extra early; a favorite in the North; for home market; fruit small size, 15 lb,
short, nearly round, dark green stripes irregular on a light green background: rind tender;
flesh light red, sweet and delicious; seeds black.
Hawk (131784) - Breeder: Manuel Rosa. Vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-Petoseed.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: Allsweet type, seeded, wide stripes, for early
planting. Similar: Sangria. Adaptation: U.S. & Mexico. 1999.
Hawkesbury (synonyms Hawkesbury Wilt Resistant, Dark Seeded Gray Monarch) -
Breeder: H.S. Shirlow, N.S.W. Australia. Parentage: selection from a field of Gray
Monarch with dark rather than light colored seed. Resistance: fusarium wilt. Similar:
Gray Monarch. 1935.
Hungarian Honey - Parentage: introduced from Hungary. 1885.
Improved Stone Mountain No.5 - Breeder: Mr. Younkin, Iowa. Parentage: Iowa Bell x
Stone Mountain. Resistance: some fusarium wilt tolerance. Similar: Stone Mountain.
Iowa 112 - Breeder: Mr. Younkin, Iowa. Parentage: Iowa Bell x Jugoslavia 7. 1938.
Iowa Belle - Breeder: Porter, Iowa. Parentage: Conqueror x unknown male parent (probably
Kleckley Sweet). 1932.
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Iowa Dixie - Breeder: Mr. Wilson, Iowa. Parentage: Iowa Belle x Japan 7. 1934.
Iowa King - Breeder: Porter, Iowa. Parentage: Conqueror x unknown male parent (probably
Kleckley Sweet). 1932.
Irish Gray - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 90 days to harvest; one of the finest
watermelons; productive, very sweet and tender; earlier than Tom Watson, but similar in
shipping quality; fruit large, 25 to 30 lb. oblong, smooth, a distinct mottled greenish gray:
rind tough and hard; flesh bright red, firm and sweet; seeds white.
Japan 7 - Parentage: received from Prof. Akewo Hemmi, Japan. Characteristics: white
flesh, yellow rind, small oval fruit, early maturity. Resistance: fusarium wilt.
Jubilee II - Breeder: Crall, Leesburg, Florida. Parentage: Jubilee x Jubilee 5.
Characteristics: fruit and plant resembles Jubilee but selected for higher resistance to wilt.
Resistance: fusarium wilt. Similar: Jubilee. 1990.
Kafir - Breeder: selected from African stock. Resistance: fusarium wilt, anthracnose. 1932.
Kengarden - Breeder: H. Mohr, University of Kentucky. Parentage: Dwarf Asahi Yamato x
(dwarf Bush Desert King x breeding lines) x New Hampshire Midget. 1975.
Kleckley Sweet (Monte Cristo) - Breeder: W.A. Kleckley, Alabama. Vendor: Robert Buist
Co. Parentage: possibly Boss x Arkansas Traveler. Characteristics: thin, glossy, dark
green rind, large white seeds, medium-red flesh, oblong fruit, 25-40 lb., 85 days to
harvest; always popular and a favorite with all; excellent for home use and nearby
markets; rind thin and brittle; flesh juicy and very sweet. 1887.
Klondike - Parentage: a mutation selected in California. Characteristics: blocky fruit, rind
solid green with stripes, 20-25 lb., fine textured flesh. 1908.
Klondike R7 - Breeder: Mr. Porter, California. Parentage: Iowa Belle x Klondike.
Characteristics: fruit 15 x 10 inch size, 20-25 lb.; thin, dark-green rind; sweet red flesh.
Resistance: fusarium wilt. 1937.
Klondike Striped - Parentage: selection by grower in California from field of Klondike.
Characteristics: oblong fruit with thin, tough, light green rind with narrow dark green
stripes, 20-25 lb., fine textured flesh. 1923.
Klondike Striped Blue Ribbon - Breeder: Mr. Porter, California. Parentage: Klondike R7 x
Klondike Striped. Characteristics: thin tough rind, light green with narrow dark stripes,
15 x 10 inch size, 20-30 lb., sweet dark-red flesh. Resistance: fusarium wilt, anthracnose,
sunburn. 1939.
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Klondike WR - Breeder: Mr. Layton, California. Parentage: California Klondike 3 x
Klondike R7. Characteristics: like Klondike, but sweeter. Resistance: fusarium wilt
(better than Klondike). 1957.
Klondike WR 60 - Breeder: Mr. Layton, California. Parentage: California Klondike 3 x
Klondike R7. 1958.
Kolb Gem - Breeder: R.F. Kolb, Alabama. Vendor: D.M. Ferry. 1885.
Long Light Icing (Gray Monarch) - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 85 days to
harvest; a large melon mostly adapted for home gardens; fruit 25 lb. cylindrical with
blunt ends, a beautiful light gray green faintly mottled darker; rind thin and tender; flesh
red, sweet and delicious; seeds white.
Long Mountain - Parentage: selection from Stone Mountain. 1936.
Matador (13786) - Breeder: Manuel Rosa. Vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-Petoseed.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: seeded, late season, large fruit, wide stripes,
vigorous vines, excellent yields. Similar: Sangria. Adaptation: U.S. and Mexico. 1999.
Mercedes (SSC 9490) - Breeder: Hollar Seed Co. Vendor: Shamrock Seed Co. Parentage:
F1 hybrid. Resistance: some races of anthracnose and fusarium wilt. Similar: Sangria.
Adaptation: All watermelon production regions. 2000.
Millennium (HMS7928) - Breeder: Bob Schroeder. Vendor: Harris Moran Seed Co.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: very dark rind pattern, dark red flesh. Resistance:
fusarium wilt race 1, anthracnose. Similar: Tri-X-Shadow. Adaptation: California,
Southeast US, Midwest, Atlantic Shore. 1999.
Monte Cristo (Kleckley Sweet) - Breeder: W.A. Kleckley, Alabama. Vendor: Robert Buist
Co. Parentage: possibly Boss x Arkansas Traveler. Characteristics: thin, glossy, dark
green rind, large white seeds, medium-red flesh, oblong fruit, 25-40 lb., 85 days to
harvest; always popular and a favorite with all; excellent for home use and nearby
markets; rind thin and brittle; flesh juicy and very sweet. 1887.
Montreal (SXW 5023) - Breeder: Gary Elmstrom. Vendor: Sunseeds. Parentage: F1
hybrid. Characteristics: seeded diploid watermelon; oblong fruit with wide dark green
stripes on a light green background; high sugar content, good flesh color. Resistance:
fusarium wilt race 1. Similar: Allsweet. Adaptation: California, Texas, Florida. 2000.
Mountain Sweet - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 90 days to harvest; for home
and local markets; fruit large, 25 lb.; oblong, dark green; with sweet juicy, light crimson
flesh; seeds brown.
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Northern Sweet - Breeder: Minnesota Agr. Exp. Sta. Parentage: selection from Russian
cultivar. Characteristics: early, round fruit, 10-12 lb. size, medium green rind with wide
stripes, red-orange flesh. 1932.
Omega (PS 3981428) - Breeder and vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds. Parentage: F1
triploid hybrid. Characteristics: seedless hybrid; typical Allsweet stripe (dark green stripe
on light green background), 18-20 lb. size fruit, very bright red flesh, mid-season
maturity. Adaptation: North America. 2001.
Orton - Breeder: Florida. Parentage: Iowa Belle x unknown male parent. 1950.
Peacock - Breeder: G. Stratis, Brawley, CA. Parentage: selection from Klondike.
Characteristics: oval fruit, 20-25 lb., dark green rind, sweet red flesh. 1939.
Peacock Special Shipper - Breeder: R. Peacock. Parentage: chance cross of Klondike.
Characteristics: smooth, dark green rind, crisp, red flesh, 20-25 lb. 1935.
Peacock WR 124 - Breeder: Mr. Layton, California. Parentage: California Klondike 3 x
Peacock x Klondike R7. 1959.
Peacock WR 50 - Breeder: Mr. Layton, California. Parentage: Klondike R7 x Peacock.
Characteristics: tough thin rind, dark green with faint dark stripes, 15 x 10 inch size, 20-
25 lb., sweet bright red flesh. Resistance: tolerant to fusarium wilt. 1955.
Premiere (SSC460057) - Breeder: Colorado Seeds. Vendor: Shamrock Seed Co. Parentage:
F1 hybrid. Characteristics: 82-85 day maturity; round to slightly oblong fruit; 12-24 lb.
average weight; sweet, red, firm flesh; medium-dark green stripes and light green
background; produces hardy vines, high yields. Similar: Tri-X-313. 1999.
Riviera (015 208) - Breeder and vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-Asgrow. Parentage: F1
hybrid. Characteristics: Crimson Sweet type, more round shape, quite early, fruit weight
approximately 5-7 kg. Resistance: fusarium wilt race 1, anthracnose. Similar: Crimson
Sweet. Adaptation: Caribbean. 1997.
Samba (SSC 31782) - Breeder and vendor: Shamrock Seed Co., Inc. Parentage: F1 triploid
hybrid. Characteristics: a very productive seedless cultivar with impressive fruit
uniformity; develops very strong vines; high yields of oval-round, large sized fruit with a
dark striping pattern; appealing firm, red flesh with high sugars; thrives under a wide
range of growing conditions; 75-85 days to maturity. Similar: Tri-X-313. Adaptation: all
watermelon growing regions. 2001.
Santa Amalia (35422) - Breeder: Manuel Rosas. Vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-
Petoseed. Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: Royal Sweet type with Crimson Sweet
stripes, oblong, 20-27 lb., strong plant vigor. Similar: no cultivar like it. Adaptation:
South America. 1999.
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Schochler - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 90 days to harvest; a very large
melon used extensively in the South, having outstanding shipping requisites for size,
tough rind and quality; fruit very long, 40 to 50 lb., rich dark green with faint stripe; flesh
bright crimson, fine grained and very sugary.
Sentinel (PS 36694) - Breeder: Jose Gomez. Vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-Petoseed.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: Royal Sweet type, Crimson Sweet stripe, oblong,
20-27 lb., strong plant vigor, excellent red flesh color. Similar: Royal Sweet.
Adaptation: U.S. and Australia. 1998.
Small Seeded Dixielee - Breeder: Crall et al., Leesburg, Florida. Parentage: Fairfax,
Summit, Charleston Gray, Texas W5, Crimson Sweet, W.R. Graybelle. Characteristics:
round-oval fruit, light green rind with narrow dark stripes, 10-15 lb., fine textured flesh,
dark, red flesh, few small black seeds, high sugar content. 1995.
Smile - Breeder and vendor: American Takii. Parentage: hybrid. Characteristics: icebox
type, with resistance to fruit cracking and tough rind for shipping; fruit have crisp
textured, sweet, dark red flesh, black seeds; fruit are round with narrow dark stripe on
light background; 6 to 8 lb fruit; 38 to 40 day maturity; fruit keep 12 days after harvest.
Adaptation: home garden and commercial fresh market. 2000.
Stone Mountain (Dixie Belle) - Breeder: H.G. Hastings, Atlanta, Georgia. Characteristics:
thick, tough, dark green rind, 17 x 14 inches, 35-40 lb., red, sweet flesh. 1924.
Summit - Breeder: Mr. Taylor, Louisiana. Parentage: Calhoun Sweet x Black Diamond.
Characteristics: large round fruit with tough, dark green-black rind, flesh red, black
mottled seeds. Resistance: fusarium wilt (high level of resistance). 1957.
Sunsplash (25453) - Breeder: Manuel Rosas. Vendor: Seminis-Petoseed. Parentage: F1
hybrid. Characteristics: seedless yellow-flesh round with thick rind, exterior color ,
narrow dark-green stripes on light green background, medium-large sizes. Similar:
Honeyheart. Adaptation: U.S. Southeast Asia. 2000.
Sweetheart - Breeder: Mr. Wittenmeyer, southern Indiana. Vendor: D.M. Ferry. 1890.
The Dixie - Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics: 85 days to harvest; a splendid
shipper; prolific, with fruit large, 25 lb., oblong, very dark green with lighter green
stripes; rind thin but strong; flesh scarlet and sweet; seeds black.
Thurmond Gray - Breeder: Mr. Thurmond, Perry, Georgia. Vendor: Robert Buist Co.
Characteristics: large elongated fruit with light green mottled rind, large seeds, pink flesh;
90 days to harvest; shipping cultivar similar to Irish Gray, but having fruit much larger;
fruit 30 to 40 lb., cylindrical, grayish-green with faint veining; rock hard rind; flesh crisp
and sweet. 1923.
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Tom Watson - Breeder: Alexander Seed Co. Vendor: Robert Buist Co. Characteristics:
elongate shaped fruit, 25-40 lb., thin tough rind, dark green with dark veining; flesh
sweet, firm, crisp, coarse, red; large brown seeds spotted with white; shipping melon.
1906.
Tribute (PX 5696) - Breeder: Manuel Rosas. Vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-Petoseed.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: seedless, round fruit, striped with medium to large
fruit. Similar Tri-X-313. Adaptation: U.S. and Mexico. 1999.
Trident (PX 58596) - Breeder: Manuel Rosas. Vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-Petoseed.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: seedless round fruit, striped, medium to large fruit,
deep red flesh and high sugars, early. Similar: Tri-X-313. Adaptation: U.S. and Mexico.
1999.
Triton (PS 37794) - Breeder: Jose Gomez. Vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-Petoseed.
Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: seedless, round, striped, medium-large, yellow
flesh. Similar: Honey Heart. Adaptation: U.S. and Asia. 1998.
White Seeded - Breeder: Mr. Porter, Iowa. Parentage: from African stock. Resistance:
fusarium wilt, anthracnose. 1932.
White-Seeded Cuban Queen (Dixie Queen) - Breeder: Johnson. Vendor: Stokes Seed Co.
Parentage: Cuban Queen x Kolb Gem. Characteristics: round fruit 30-40 lb., pink flesh,
white seeds, narrow dark green stripes over light green rind; 90 days to harvest; popular
with home gardeners, roadside markets, truckers and shippers; fruit oblong or nearly
round; rind thin, but tough; flesh crisp and extremely sweet with very few seeds; seeds
white and small. 1890.
Wills Sugar - Vendor: O.H. Will Seed Co., Bismarck, North Dakota. 1889.
Wrigley (XP 4590249) - Breeder and vendor: Seminis-Asgrow. Parentage:F1 hybrid.
Characteristics: seedless, oval blocky shape with excellent flesh color, maturity 80-90
days, average fruit size 12-16 lb. Resistance: anthracnose, fusarium wilt. Similar: A and
C 5244. Adaptation: U.S. wholesale market. 2000.
Yellow Dragon (PX 33994) - Breeder: Jose Gomez. Vendor: Seminis Vegetable Seeds-
Petoseed. Parentage: F1 hybrid. Characteristics: yellow seeded watermelon, medium
blocky fruit, good taste, crisp flesh. Similar: Yellow Doll. Adaptation: wholesale,
Pacific rim. 1997.

17
Botany
The watermelon is a cross-pollinated crop even though self-pollination and sibbing are
common. The watermelon is generally monoecious and rarely andromonoecious (sex-type
very common in C. lanatus var. citroides) (Mohr, 1986); wild relatives can be dioecious
(table 2). Andromonoecy is recessive to monoecy and the ratio of staminate to pistillate or
perfect flowers in the commercial varieties usually is 4:1 or 7:1 (Maynard et al., 2001).
Among the adapted varieties Sugarbaby, Mickylee, and Crimson Sweet have a high
female/male flowers ratio; Allsweet and Jubilee, instead, have a low female/male flowers
ratio.

Male flower Female flower
Male-sterility is useful in hybrid production. Two different male-sterile mutants are widely
known, 'glabrous male sterile' (gms) and chinese male sterile (cms) and the latter is preferred
because gms is less vigorous and have poor seeds set. Parthenocarpy is inducible with
18
growth regulator but does not occur naturally and no mutant carrying any gene for
parthenocarpy has been found yet (Maynard et al., 2001).
Apomixis has not been reported so far and asexual propagation has been suggested
particularly for the production of seedles watermelon but it is too expensive compared to
seed production.
Pollination in nature is done by bees even though the flowers of watermelon are not the most
attractive: weed control and wise choices of other cultivated species flowering at the same
time as watermelon in the surrounding areas are very important aspects to be considered.
Controlled pollinations can be done in the early morning in days with good levels of solar
radiation (Mohr, 1986) (no cloudy days and no Winter pollinations in area North of the
Carolina's) by hand. Female flowers must be isolated the evening before placing on them
foam cups or nets to avoid bees visiting them at random. It is a good practice to protect also
the male flowers to avoid contaminations of the pollen with other pollen.
In the greenhouses, as long as they are well insulated and insects cannot access them, there is
no need for flower protection
Pollinations can be easily done by hand as follow:
Harvest the male flowers and keep them in a cup, without mixing flowers from plants
genetically different.
Revert the petals of the male toward the petiol and then use the flower as a brush to
impollinate the female: if the female is not completely open, it can be opened but the
19
petals have not to be broken. If the female plant has perfect flowers the anthers
should be removed with a forcip to gain more successful pollinations.
o Pollen is mature for pollination only if bright yellow.
o The stigma is ready to receive the pollen only if yellow-white ; if darker, it is
too old and the pollination will fail.
o The anthers, the stigma, and the ovary have not to be touched with the naked
hand because it seems to compromise the pollination.
Hand-pollination
20
Pollinated flowers must be marked with a label reporting the following data:
Year and location.
Cross- or self-pollination ID (plot numbers can be used and then a nursery plan with
detailed ID of every plot should be kept); for self's a x surrounded by a circle might
be used as code.
Date of pollination.
The label could be of different shape but always plastic, waterproof, and white (other colors
might attract insects). The label should be written with a permanent marker or, in certain
cases, with a pencil: it is important that the codes last long enough to accompany the seeds all
the way from pollination to seed-packaging. The label has not to be attached to the petiol
because it endangers fruit-set: it is also important to establish a convention on the position of
the label before or after the knot with marked flower (before seems wiser because the newer
females will develop after the older ones).
21
Greenhouse and Field Pollination Tags
22
Genetics
The genetics of the watermelon has been widely studied and several genes have been
reported and described (Rhodes, 1999).
Table 6. Gene list for watermelon
z

Gene symbol Gene name and description
I
st
II
nd
Citations

a - Andromonoecious. Recessive to monoecious
(Poole and Grimball, 1945; Porter, 1937; Rosa, 1928)
Aco-1 - Aconitase-1.
(Navot et al., 1990)
Aco-2 - Aconitase-2.
Adh-1+ - Alcohol dehydrogenase-1. One of five codominant alleles,
each regulating one band.
(Navot and Zamir, 1986; Navot and Zamir, 1987; Zamir et al.,
1984)
Adh-1
1
- Alcohol dehydrogenase-11. One of five codominant alleles,
each regulating one band. Found in C. lanatus var. citroides
and C. colocynthis.
1984)
Adh-1
2
each regulating one band. Found in C. lanatus and C.
lanatus var. citroides.
` (Navot and Zamir, 1986; Navot and Zamir, 1987; Zamir et al.,
1984)
Adh-1
3
each regulating one band. Found in Praecitrullus fistulosus.
1984)
Adh-1
4
each regulating one band. Found in Acant hosi cyos
naudinianus.
1984)
Af - Aulacophora faveicollis resistance. Resistance to the red
pumpkin beetle. Dominant to susceptibility.
(Vashistha and Choudhury, 1972)
23
Aps-1 Acph-A Acid phosphatase-1.
(Navot and Zamir, 1986; Navot and Zamir, 1987; Navot et al.,
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Aps-2
1
- Acid phosphatase-21. One of two codominant alleles, each
regulating one band. Found in C. lanatus and C. colocynthis.
1990)
Aps-2
2
- Acid phosphatase-22. One of two codominant alleles, each
regulating one band. Found in Acanthosicyos naudinianus.
1990)
Ar-1 B,Gc Anthracnose resistance to race 1 of Glomerella cingulata var.
orbiculare.
(Hall et al., 1960; Layton, 1937; Weetman, 1937)
Ar-2
1
- Anthracnose resistance to race 2 of Col l et ot ri chum
l agenari um derived from PI 299379 and PI 189225.
Resistance in Citrullus colocynthis is due to other dominant
factors.
(Love and Rhodes, 1988; Love and Rhodes, 1991; Sowell et al.,
1980; Suvanprakorn and Norton, 1980; Wimmer et al., 1997)
b l t l Branch less. Meristems for tendrils and branches are
ultimately replaced by floral meristems.
(Lin et al., 1992; Rhodes et al., 1999; Zhang et al., 1996b)
C - Canary yellow flesh. Dominant to pink. ii inhibitory to CC,
resulting in red flesh. In the absence of ii, CC is epistatic to
YY.
(Henderson et al., 1998; Poole, 1944)
d - Dotted seed coat. Black dotted seeds when dominant for r, t,
and w.
(Kanda, 1951; Poole et al., 1941; Porter, 1937)
d b - Resistance to gummy stem blight caused by Didymella
bryoniae from PI 189225. Recessive to susceptibility.
(Norton, 1979)
dg - Delayed green. Cotyledons and young leaves are initially
pale green but later develop chlorophyll. First reported to
be hypostatic to I-dg. More recent evidence (submitted for
publication) indicate simple recessiveness.
(Rhodes, 1986)
Dia-1 - Diaphorase-1.
(Navot and Zamir, 1986)
dw-1 - Dwarf-1. Short internodes, due to fewer, shorter cells than
normal. Allelic to dw-1s.
(Liu and Loy, 1972; Mohr and Sandhu, 1975)
dw-1
s
- Short vine. Allelic to dw-1. Vine length intermediate
between normal and dwarf. Hypocotyl somewhat longer
24
than normal vine and considerably longer than dwarf. dw-1s
recessive to normal.
(Henderson, 1991)
dw-2 - Dwarf-2. Short internodes, due to fewer cells.
(Liu and Loy, 1972; Mohr, 1956; Mohr and Sandhu, 1975)
e t Explosive rind. Thin, tender rind, bursting when cut.
(Poole, 1944; Porter, 1937)
Est-1+ - Esterase-1+. One of six codominant alleles, each regulating
one band. Found in C. lanatus.
1990)
Est-1
1
- Esterase-11. One of six codominant alleles, each regulating
one band. Found in C. lanatus var. citroides and C.
colocynthis.
(Chambliss et al., 1968; Navot and Zamir, 1986; Navot et al.,
1990)
Est-1
2
one band. Found in C. colocynthis.
1990)
Est-1
3
one band. Found in Praecitrullus fistulosus.
1990)
Est-1
4
one band. Found in C. ecirrhosus.
1990)
Est-1
5
one band. Found in Acanthosicyos naudinianus.
1990)
Est-2+ - Esterase-2+. One of five codominant alleles, each regulating
one band. Found in C. lanatus.
1990)
Est-2
1
- Esterase-21. One of five codominant alleles, each regulating
1990)
Est-2
2
1990)
25
Est-2
3
one band. Found in Praecitrullus fistulosus.
1990)
Est-2
4
one band. Found in Acanthosicyos naudinianus.
1990)
f - Furrowed fruit surface. Recessive to smooth.
(Poole, 1944)
Fdp-1 - Fructose 1,6 diphosphatase-1.
(Navot and Zamir, 1986; Navot and Zamir, 1987)
Fo- 1 - Dominant gene for resistance to race 1 of Fusarium
oxysporum f. sp. niveum.
(Henderson et al., 1970; Netzer and Weintall, 1980)
For-1 - Fructose 1,6 diphosphatase-1.
F w r - Fruit fly resistance in watermelon. Dominant to
susceptibility to Dacus cucurbitae.
(Khandelwal and Nath, 1978)
g d Light green skin. Light green fruit recessive to dark green
(D) and striped green (ds).
(Netzer and Weintall, 1980; Poole and Grimball, 1945;
Vashistha and Choudhury, 1972)
gs ds Striped green skin. Recessive to dark green but dominant to
light green skin.
(Love and Rhodes, 1991; Weetman, 1937)
Gdh-1 - Glutamate dehydrogenase-1. Isozyme located in cytosol.
Gdh-2 - Glutamate dehydrogenase-2. Isozyme located in plastids.
(Navot and Zamir, 1986; Navot et al., 1990)
gf - Green flower color.
(Kwon et al., 1999)
gms ms g Glabrous male sterile. Foliage lacking trichomes; male
sterile - caused by chromosome desynapsis.
(Ray and Sherman, 1988; Watts, 1962; Watts, 1967)
go c golden. Yellow color of older leaves and mature fruit.
(Barham, 1956)
Got -1+ - Glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase-1+. One of four
codominant alleles, each regulating one band. Found in C.
lanatus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
26
Got-1
1
- Glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase-11. One of four
colocynthis and Praecitrullus fistulosus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Got-1
2
lanatus var. citroides.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Got-1
3
codominant alleles, each regulating one band. Found in
Acanthosicyos naudinianus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Got - 2+ - Glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase-2+. One of five
lanatus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Got-2
1
- Glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase-21. One of five
colocynthis.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Got-2
2
ecirrhosus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Got-2
3
codominant alleles, each regulating one band. Found in
Praecitrullus fistulosus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Got-2
4
codominant alleles, each regulating oneband. Found in
Acanthosicyos naudinianus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Got-3 - Glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase-3.
(Zamir et al., 1984)
Got-4 - Glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase-4.
(Navot et al., 1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
27
hsp70 - Heat shock protein 70. One gene presequence 72-kDa hsp70
is modulated differently in glyoxomes and plastids.
(Wimmer et al., 1997)
I-dg - Inhibitor of delayed green. Epistatic to dg: dg dg I-dg I-dg
and dg dg I-dg i-dg plants are pale green; and dg dg i-dg i-dg
plants are normal. This gene was not present in more
advanced germplasm.
(Rhodes, 1986)
Idh-1 - Isocitrate dehydrogenase-1.
i-C - Inhibitor of canary yellow, resulting in red flesh.
(Henderson et al., 1998)
j a - Juvenile albino. Chlorophyll reduced by short days in
seedlings, leaf margins, rind.
(Zhang et al., 1996b)
l - Long seed. Long recessive to medium length of seed;
interacts with s.
(Poole et al., 1941)
Lap-1 - Leucine aminopeptidase-1.
m - Mottled skin. Greenish white mottling of fruit skin.
(Poole and Grimball, 1945; Weetman, 1937)
Mdh-1+ - Malic dehydrogenase-1+. One of two codominant alleles,
each regulating one band. Found in C. lanatus.
(Navot and Zamir, 1987; Zamir et al., 1984)
Mdh-1
1
- Malic dehydrogenase-11. One of two codominant alleles,
Mdh-2+ - Malic dehydrogenase-2+. One of three codominant alleles,
Mdh-2
1
- Malic dehydrogenase-21. One of three codominant alleles,
each regulating one band. Found in C. colocynthis.
Mdh-2
2
- Malic dehydrogenase-22. One of three codominant alleles,
Me-1+ - Malic enzyme-1+. One of three codominant alleles, each
regulating one band. Found in C. lanatus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Me-1
1
- Malic enzyme-11. One of three codominant alleles, each
regulating one band. Found in Praecitrullus fistulosus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
28
Me-1
2
- Malic enzyme-12. One of three codominant alleles, each
regulating one band. Found in C. colocynthis.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Me-2 - Malic enzyme-2.
ms - Male sterile.
(Zamir et al., 1984; Zhang and Wang, 1990; Zhang et al., 1994)
msdw - male sterile, dwarf.
(Huang et al., 1998)
nl - Nonlobed leaves. Leaves lack lobing; dominance incomplete.
(Mohr, 1953)
O - Elongate fruit. Incompletely dominant to spherical.
(Poole, 1944; Weetman, 1937)
p - Pencilled lines on skin. Inconspicuous; recessive to netted
fruit.
(Poole, 1944; Weetman, 1937)
Pgd- 1+ 6-Pgdh-1+ 6-Phosphogluconate dehydrogenase-1+. One of three
codominant alleles, each regulating one plastid band. Found
in C. lanatus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pgd-1
1
6-Pgdh-1
1
6-Phosphogluconate dehydrogenase-11. One of three
in Praecitrullus fistulosus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pgd-1
2
6-Pgdh-1
2
6-Phosphogluconate dehydrogenase-12. One of three
in Acanthosicyos naudinianus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pg d - 2 + 6- Pgdh- 2+ 6-Phosphogluconate dehydrogenase-2+. One of five
codominant alleles, each regulating one cytosolic band.
Found in C. lanatus.
Pgd-2
1
6-Pgdh-2
1
6-Phosphogluconate dehydrogenase-21. One of five
Found in C. ecirrhosus.
Pgd-2
2
6-Pgdh-2
2
Found in Praecitrullus fistulosus.
29
Pgd-2
3
6-Pgdh-2
3
Found in C. colocynthis.
Pgd-2
4
6-Pgdh-2
4
Found in Acanthosicyos naudinianus.
Pgi-1+ - Phosphoglucoisomerase-1+. One of three codominant alleles,
each regulating one plastid band. Found in C. lanatus.
1990)
Pgi-1
1
- Phosphoglucoisomerase-11. One of three codominant alleles,
each regulating one plastid band. Found in C. colocynthis.
1990)
Pgi-1
2
- Phosphoglucoisomerase-12. One of three codominant alleles,
each regulating one plastid band. Found in Acanthosicyos
naudinianus.
1990)
Pgi-2+ - Phosphoglucoisomerase-2+. One of six codominant alleles,
each regulating one cytosolic band. Found in C. lanatus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pgi-2
1
- Phosphoglucoisomerase-21. One of six codominant
alleles,each regulating one cytosolic band. Found in C.
lanatus and C. colocynthis.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pgi-2
2
- Phosphoglucoisomerase-22. One of six codominant alleles,
each regulating one cytosolic band. Found in C. ecirrhosus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pgi-2
3
each regulating one cytosolic band. Found in Praecitrullus
fistulosus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pgi-2
4
each regulating one cytosolic band. Found in C. lanatus var.
citroides.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
30
Pgi-2
5
each regulating one cytosolic band. Found in Acanthosicyos
naudinianus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pgm-1+ - Phosphoglucomutase-1+. One of four codominant alleles,
each regulating one plastid band. Found in C. lanatus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pgm-1
1
- Phosphoglucomutase-11. One of four codominant alleles,
each regulating one plastid band. Found in C. colocynthis.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pgm-1
2
each regulating one plastid band. Found in Acanthosicyos
naudinianus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pgm-1
3
each regulating one plastid band. Found in Praecitrullus
fistulosus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Pgm-2+ - Phosphoglucomutase-2+. One of four codominant alleles,
Pgm-2
1
each regulating one cytosolic band. Found in Acanthosicyos
naudinianus.
Pgm-2
2
Pgm-2
3
each regulating one cytosolic band. Found in Praecitrullus
fistulosus.
p m - Powdery mildew susceptibility. Susceptibility to
Sphaerotheca fuliginea.
(Robinson et al., 1975)
Prx-1+ - Peroxidase-1+. One of seven codominant alleles, each
1990)
31
Prx-1
1
- Peroxidase-11. One of seven codominant alleles, each
regulating one band. Found in C. colocynthis.
1990)
Prx-1
2
regulating one band. Found in Praecitrullus fistulosus.
1990)
Prx-1
3
1990)
Prx-1
4
regulating one band. Found in C. ecirrhosus.
1990)
Prx-1
5
regulating one band. Found in C. lanatus and C. colocynthis.
1990)
Prx-1
6
regulating one band. Found in Acanthosicyos naudinianus.
1990)
Prx-2 - Peroxidase-2.
Prx-3 - Peroxidase-3.
r - Red seed coat. Interacts with w and t.
s - Short seeds. Epistatic to l.
Sat - Serine acetyltransferase. Catalyzes the formation of O-
acetylserine from serine and acetyl-CoA.
Skdh-1 - Shikimic acid dehydrogenase-1.
Skdh-2
+
- Shikimic acid dehydrogenase-2+. One of six codominant
alleles, each regulating one band.
1990)
Skdh-2
1
- Shikimic acid dehydrogenase-21. One of six codominant
alleles, each regulating one band. Found in C. colocynthis.
1990)
32
Skdh-2
2
1990)
Skdh-2
3
alleles, each regulating one band. Found in Acanthosicyos
naudinianus.
1990)
Skdh-2
4
alleles, each regulating one band. Found in C. ecirrhosus.
1990)
Skdh-2
5
alleles, each regulating one band. Found in Praecitrullus
fistulosus.
1990)
slv - Seedling leaf variegation. Conferred by a single recessive
gene. Dominant allele at same locus in PI 482261.
(Provvidenti, 1994)
Sod-1
+
- Superoxide dismutase-1+. One of three codominant alleles,
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Sod-1
1
- Superoxide dismutase-11. One of three codominant alleles,
each regulating one band. Found in C. colocynthis.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Sod-1
2
- Superoxide dismutase-12. One of three codominant alleles,
naudinianus.
1990; Zamir et al., 1984)
Sod-2
+
- Superoxide dismutase-2+. One of two codominant alleles,
Sod-2
1
- Superoxide dismutase-21. One of two codominant alleles,
naudinianus.
Sod-3 - Superoxide dismutase-3. One of two codominant alleles,
33
Sod-3
1
- Superoxide dismutase-31. One of two codominant alleles,
Sp - Spotted cotyledons, leaves and fruit.
(Rhodes, 1986)
Spr-1 - Seed protein-1.
Spr-4 Sp-4 Seed protein-4.
Spr-5 Sp-5 Seed protein-5.
su Bi, suBi Suppressor of bitterness. Non-bitter fruit. Bitterness in C.
colocynthis is due to Su Su genotype.
(Chambliss et al., 1968; Navot et al., 1990)
t bt Tan seed coat. Interacts with r and w.
(Mc Kay, 1936; Poole et al., 1941)
tl - Tendrilless. After 4th or 5th node, vegetative axillary buds
are transformed into flower buds and leaf shape is altered.
(Rhodes et al., 1999; Zhang et al., 1996a)
Tpi-1
+
- Triosephosphatase isomerase-1+. One of four codominant
alleles, each regulating one band. Found in C. lanatus.
1990)
Tpi-1
1
- Triosephosphatase isomerase-11. One of four codominant
1990)
Tpi-1
2
fistulosus.
1990)
Tpi-1
3
naudinianus.
1990)
Tpi-2
+
- Triosephosphatase isomerase-2+. One of three codominant
alleles, each regulating one band. Found in C. lanatus.
34
Tpi-2
1
- Triosephosphatase isomerase-21. One of three codominant
naudinianus.
Tpi-2
2
- Triosephosphatase isomerase-22. One of three codominant
fistulosus.
Ure-1 - Urease-1.
w - White seed coat. Interacts with r and t.
Wf W White flesh. Wf is epistatic to the second gene b (or C?)
which conditions yellow (Canary yellow?) and red flesh.
Wf_B_ and Wf_bb are white fleshed, wf wf B_ is yellow
fleshed, and wf wf b b is red fleshed.
(Shimotsuma, 1963)
y r d Yellow flesh (`Golden Honey' type). Recessive to Y (red
flesh).
(Henderson, 1989; Henderson et al., 1998; Poole, 1944; Porter,
1937)
yo - Orange flesh (from `Tendersweet Orange Flesh'). Allelic to
y. Y (red flesh) is dominant to y
o
(orange flesh) and y (yellow
flesh); y
o
(orange flesh) is dominant to y (yellow flesh).
(Henderson, 1989; Henderson et al., 1998)
Yl - Yellow leaf (from `Yellow Skin'). Incompletely dominant to
green leaf.
(Warid and Abd el Hafez, 1976)

z
Currently being reviewed by Guner, N. and Wehner, T. C.
Various traits determine the overall phenotypic value of the watermelon and can be in
general grouped as traits determining the plant-habit and traits determining the fruit-
phenotype. Both the categories are very important since they concur together to generate
varieties with certain standard in terms of type, adaptation, yield, quality, and resistance to
different stresses.
35
Inbreeding depression is not a concern for watermelon breeders. Heterosis is not as
important as in other cross-pollinated crops and hybrid varieties are useful only as a way to
combine valuable dominant traits together: however, inbred lines are far enough for breeding
for yield and quality (Wehner et al., 2001).
For a complete description and discussion of these traits refer to (Wehner et al., 2001) and
(Mohr, 1986).
Fruit Traits
Size
o Polygenic trait
12 lb 18 lb 24 lb 32 lb
Ice box Small (syn. pee-wee) Medium Large Giant
36
Shape
Round Oval
Blocky Elongate
o Round vs. Elongate => single gene
o Blocky => heterozygote (F1)
37
Rind Color (syn. Pattern)
Solid (light, dark) Narrow Striped Medium Striped
Wide Striped Gray
38
Rind Thickness (at blossom end) and Toughness
Good Rind Thickness
Too Thin Rind Too Thick Rind
o Rind Toughness can be measured in different ways
Using a penetrometer at stem-end
Pressing with a thumb at stem-end
Dropping the fruit from knee-heigth to see if it split-opens
39
Flesh Color

White Dark Red Light red

Canary Yellow Salmon Yellow Orange
o Light Red (YY) > Orange (y
0
y
0
) > Salmon Yellow (yy)
o Canary Yellow (CC) > Non-Canary Yellow (cc)
o White > Red
o Dark Red => inheritance is still unknown (hypothesis: intensiphire gene)
40
Flesh Texture
o Soft (syn. Watery) vs. Firm (syn. Crispy)
o Fibrous vs. Non-Fibrous
Soluble Solids Content and Flavor
o "Soluble Solids = Sugars" is a generally accepted approximation
o Measured with a refractometer (Brix-Meter)
Min. Marketable 10%
Average Today 14%
o Polygenic trait
o Fructose tastes sweeter than sucrose but this difference is not measurable with
the refractometer: tasting the fruit is also very important to determine presence
of bitternes or other desirable/undesirable characteristics
Seeds and seedlessness
Seeded (Diploid) Seedless (Triploid)
41
Too big Seed-Pockets Vestigial Seeds
are a difect in seeded fruits are often present in seedless fruits
o In seeded watermelons too many or too big seeds are difects
o In seedless watermelons a few seeds (3-4) are accepted
42
o Seeds can be of different colors
White Seeds Black Seeds
Red Seeds Green Seeds
Specled Seeds Tan Seeds (pink is fungicide)
43
o Seeds can vary in size from very small (tomato seeds-size) to very large
(pumpkin seeds-size)
Small Seeds Large Seeds
o Seeds can vary in type (Non-Egusi > Egusi; Egusi seeds are present only in
wild relatives of the cultivated watermelon)
Non-Egusi (Normal) Seeds Egusi Seeds (only in C. colocynthis)
44
Plant Traits
Leaf Type
Small vs. Large Leaf Grades of Lobation (also Non-lobed)
Stem Shape and Habit
Straight Stem Zig-Zag Stem
45
Plant Habit
Normal Type Bushy Type (Highly Branching)
o Recently bushy-types have been considered by breeders for the production of
small and highly androecious pollinizer for seedless production
Plant Size
Small (6 Plants/Plot) Large (6 Plants/Plot)
o Watermelons can vary in size from dwarf to large
o Usually small-fruited varieties have shorter vines
46
Production Traits
Yield
o Polygenic trait
o # of genes involved still unknown
o Growers' goal => 1 load/acre = 45,000 lb/acre
o Breeding for yield is in progress but there has been no valuable advance yet
Genetic variability among watermelon cultivars has been demonstrated
to be very low (Levi et al., 2001a)
Yield is phenotipically given by[( # of fruits culls) x average weight]
Table 8. Heritability (h
2
B
) estimates for yield
(Gopal et al., 1996)
z

Character s
2
P
s
2
G
h
2
B

# of fruit/vine 28.45 27.87 85.93
m fruit weight 16.43 16.33 98.84
Yield/vine 35.43 35.02 77.07

z
Data from analysis of F1 hybrids of 6 diverse varieties
Earliness
o Polygenic trait
o Growers' goal => "The earlier, the better!"
o Measured as # of nodes to the 1
st
female flower or # of days to the first mature
fruit from planting
47
Table 9. Heritability (h
2
B
) estimates for earliness
(Sidhu et al., 1977)
z

Character h
2
N
h
2
B

# of nodes to the 1
st
female flower 24.70 35.85
# of days to the 1
st
mature fruit 15.78 22.89

z
Data from analysis of F1 hybrids of 7 diverse varieties; the
test should be repeated with an NC Design to confirm these
data
Stress Tolerance Traits
For a complete pathological description of diseases and insects affecting the watermelon
refer to (Zitter et al., 1996) and for fisiological disorders to (Maynard et al., 2001).
Fusarium Wilt
Table 10. Resistance to Fusarium Wilt
(Wehner et al., 2001)

Cultigen Resistance to Race
0 1 2

Black Diamond, Sugar Baby S S S
Quetzali, Mickylee R S S
Charleston Gray, Crimson Sweet R M S
Calhoun Gray R R S
PI 296341, PI 271769 R R R

Anthracnose (Colletotrichum lagenarium)
o 7 races: 1, 2, and 3 the most dangerous
o Resistance to race 1 and 3 => single dominant gene (Ar-1)
o Resistance to race 2 => polygenic
48
Table 11. Resistance to Anthracnose

Cultigen Resistance to Race
1 2 3

Congo, Fairfax, Charleston Gray,
Crimson Sweet, others R S R
PI 189225, PI 271775, PI 299379,
PI 271778, PI 203551, PI 270550,
PI 326515, PI 271775, PI 271779,
PI 203551 R ? R
R 143, PI 512385 ? R ?

Gummy Stem Blight (Didymella bryoniae)
o Resistance => single recessive gene (db)
Table 12. Resistance to Gummy Stem Blight
(Song et al., 2002)

Cultigen Level of Resistance

PI 164248 High
PI 244019 High
PI 254744 High
PI 271771 High
PI 279461 High
PI 296332 High
PI 379243 High
PI 482276 High
PI 482284 High
PI 482379 High
PI 490383 High
PI 526233 High
PI 189225 Moderate
PI 271778 Moderate

49
GSB Resistance (front plots) vs. Susceptibility (border and back plots)
Powdery Mildew (Sphaerotheca fuliginea) (Wehner et al., 2001)
o Susceptibility => single recessive gene (pm)
o Resistant germplasm => PI 189225, PI 271778
Bacterial Fruit Blotch (Acidovorax avenae subsp. citrulli) (Wehner et al., 2001)
o Resistant germplasm => not yet found
o Germplasm screening is in progress
o Surface sterilization of fruits before seed-extraction seems to control the
spresding of the disease among the breeding-material
50
Bacterial Rind Necrosis (Erwinia spp.)
Table 13. Resistance to Bacterial Rind Necrosis

Cultigen Level of Resistance

Sweet princess R
Jubilee R
Klondike Blue Ribbon S
Louisiana Queen S

Yellow Vine (Wehner et al., 2001)
o New important disease
o Studies are in progress
Verticillium Wilt (Wehner et al., 2001)
o New important disease
o Studies are in progress
Alternaria Leaf Spot (Wehner et al., 2001)
o Resistant germplasm => 'Sugar Baby', 'Faifax', 'Calhoun Gray'
Root Knot Nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.) (Wehner et al., 2001)
Viruses (Strange et al., 2002; Wehner et al., 2001)
51
o Resistant germplasm
WMV-2 => PI 244018, PI 244019
ZYMV => PI 482299, PI 482261, PI 595203, PI 255137
PRSV (WMV-1) => PI 278005, PI 277972, PI278009, PI244017
Aphiis gossypii (Wehner et al., 2001)
o Resistant germplasm => PI 299563
Spider Mites (Wehner et al., 2001)
o Resistant germplasm => 'Congo', 'Giza 1'
Dacus cucurbitae (Wehner et al., 2001)
o Resistance => single dominat gene (Fwr)
o Resistant germplasm => PI 299563
Aulacophora foveicollis (Pumpkin Beetle) (Wehner et al., 2001)
o Resistant germplasm => 'Afghan'
Spotted, Striped, Banded Cucumber Beetles (Wehner et al., 2001)
o Germplasm screening is needed
Pickleworm (Wehner et al., 2001)
52
o Resistant germplasm => 'Blue Ribbon', 'Crimson Sweet'
Hollowheart (Wehner et al., 2001)
o The most important physiological disorder
o Mechanism still not clear but high environmental variation is common
o Some degrees of resistance among cultivars
Severe Hollowheart
Rind Necrosis, Blossom-End Rot, Cross Stitch (Wehner et al., 2001)
o Less important physiological disorders
o More informations are needed
o Breeding for resistance might be a plus for leading varieties
53
Chilling (Provvidenti, 1992; Xu et al., 2000)
o The most important environmental stress
o Breeding for resistance is very important for certain areas of early production
o Resistance => single dominat gene
o Resistant germplasm => PI 482322, Zimbabwe collection
54
Classical Breeding Techniques
Breeding techniques appliable to the watermelon are widely and accurately described and
discussed in (Wehner et al., 2001); the following schemes summarize the main points of the
cited chapter. Of course breeders might develop programs based on mixtures of these basic
techniques presented. How to generate the original base population to start a breeding
programs still is a matter of choices and art of the breeder. Limiting factors for watermelon
breeding might be the size of the plants and consequently the amount of land needed; the
natural cycle also is quite long but a good choice of the locations and maybe cohoperation
with farms and institutions in the Southern Emisphere might allow 3 to 4 generations per
year. Other limitations are arising now from the necessity to keep the seeds clean from
pathogens: if fruits have to be sterilized before cutting and cut away from watermelon plants
(one of the practice suggested for prevention of fruit blotch contaminations), harvest and
handling of the fruits might become challenging for recurrent selection designs.
Recurrent selection
Two main designs for population improvement
o Recurrent selection for phenotypic traits
o Reciprocal recurrent selection half-sib families testing
Advantages
o Possible gain for quantitative traits (i.e. yield)
o Improvement of the base population and contemporary production of elit
inbreds
o Open pollination (not in RRS-HS)
55
Disadvantages
o Lots of resources required
Labor
Field space for testing
Pedigree breeding
Advantages
o Possible to combine genes from two-three different elit parents
o High control of crosses
o Continue selection
o Possible to produce elit inbreds and hybrids
Disadvantages
o Time consuming
o Reduces variability in the germplasm
o Limited to the programmed crosses
o Possible gain only for qualitative traits
Backcross breeding
Same advantages and disadvantages of pedigree breeding
Very useful to add a single gene (usually for resistance to pathogens) to an adapted
breeding line or cultivar
56
Inbreds development
Developed out of the breeding designs above
Lines become inbreds at the S6-S8 generation of self-pollination
o Usually open-pollination by bees in isolation blocks (or cages)
Usually performing as well as hybrids
Final selection required at S6-S8 before release or use as parental for hybrids
development
Hybrids development
Developed usually by crossing two (rarely more) inbreds
Very useful to protect property of the inbred parents
Require a lot of resourches for pollination (hand-pollination) or for use of male-
sterility systems
Seedless development
See below for description of the technique
Useful to use tetraploids with grey rind for crossing with dyploids with striped rind
o Intercrossing rate in openpollination is about 84%
The watermelon has been bred mainly using pedigree breeding and using a narrow base sets
of parentals until now so that genetic variation among modern cultivars is very low (much
lower than among old cultivars from the late 1,800's and early 1,900's). Selection for
57
qualitative traits has been done gaining very good results in terms of quality, type, and
adaptability; selection for quantitative traits has enhanced the average levels of sugar content
and yield but the variability has been decreased.
It does look like that there is plenty of possibilities to experiment other breeding designs to
try to keep the high quality gained over about 150 years of selection increasing the value of
certain quantitative traits.
58
Special Breeding Techniques
Biotechnologies are applied at a certain extent nowadays also to watermelons:
Molecular markers have been found for tagging genes for pathogen resistance (Levi,
2001)
Linkage maps have been constructed using the RAPD technology (Levi et al., 2001b)
Genetic diversity among cultivars has been tested using the RAPD technology (Levi
and Thomas, 2001; Levi et al., 2001a)
Tissue culture has been proposed as a technique for transformation and for propagation of
valuable phenotypes but the high costs cannot compete with seed propagation: so far tissue
culture is still used for propagation of valuable tetraploid watermelons for the productions of
seedless triploids.
Interspecific hybridization could be used to introgreed valuable traits from wild relatives and
in particular fom Citrullus colocynthis which is a valuable source of pathogen-resistant
germplasm.
Transformation could be used to increase genetic variability in the watermelon; seeds or
plantlets in vitro could be trasformed and then screened and characterized for several
different traits generating to a new collection of transformed germplasm. Mutation breeding
has already been applied in China for male-sterility and triploid production and has given
encouraging results even if not definite or marketable (Zhang and Rhodes, 1992).
59
Polyploidization (the technique was initiated by Kihara and his group (Eigsti, 1979)) has
been used for the production of triploid seedless watermelons. The technique implies several
passages:
Valuable diploid cultigens are treated with chromosomal doubling agents (colchicine
or dinitroaniline herbicides) to obtain somatic tetraploids (somatic ploidy level can be
detected by screening of the number of chloroplast in the guard-cells: 6 in diploids,
12 in tetraploids) that are self-pollinated to obtain tetraploid seeds
Tetraploids undergo to several cycles of self-pollination and selection particularly to
increase their seed-production and reduce defects
Once the tetraploid line is selected and tested, it can be used as female parent for
crossing with a selected diploid male for the production of triploid hybrids (the
reciprocal does not produce seeds)
Triploidy causes in watermelon male-sterility: though, triploid females need a diploid
pollinizer to producefruits in the grower- fields
It has been reported that russian scientists found spontaneous watermelon polyploids, but
direct informations are not available: further investigations should be required (Eigsti, 1979).
Other biotechnologies might be employed on the improvement of the watermelon but
limiting factors are deriving more from social and political issues rather than scientific
limitations. Gene sequencing, biopathway studies, transformation techniques and gene
tagging techniques (molecular markers, AFLP, RAPD, Microarrays, etc.) should be used
routinarily at least from public geneticists to gain better understanding of the genetic and
biomolecular characteristics of this species. In the future techniques such as gene silencing
60
and/or overexpression might be very useful in solving problems related particularly to 1)
pathogenic or environmental stress resistance, and 2) sex determination and parthenocarpy (it
would allow easier and more economic ways to produce hybrid seeds and seedless varieties).
61
Selection Techniques and Trialing Methods
Methods for selection can be fairly different among breeders but there are some common
guidelines that can be followed.
Type
Selection for type of fruit or plant (dwarf types, busch types, etc.) is very subjective to the
breeder judgement and to the goals of the breeding programs. Attention has to be payed to
do not narrow the presence in the base populations of different types because they could
become necessary to adapt the breeding strategy to the everchanging market. In the past
selection for fruit-type and plant-habit was done at the seedling stage by looking at size
and/or shape of cotyledons and stem (Mohr, 1986) but it is not possible anymore: the actual
market requires a very accurate selection for these traits so that approximation is not
possible; seedling selection can be useful to eventually reduce high numbers of lines to a
pool that can be easily tested in replicated trials.
Breeders have different personal preferences in grading methods for shape and size of the
fruits and for habit of the plants: the techniques range between simple visual evaluation with
the aid of grading scales and the precise measure of the characters (length/diameter ratio for
the fruits, foliage densities, leaf area indexes, vine length, etc. for the plant-habit).
Yield
Yield is measured as number of fruits per plant (average of multiple plants per plot and count
of all the marketable fruits in the plot) and average weight of the fruits (can be averaged over
the most representative 10-20 fruits per plot or, if the plot is fairly uniform, as the weight of
62
the single most representative fruit). Usually breeders measure yield at later stage in cultivar
development because variability for this trait is believed to be quite low and highly
environmental (however, specific research should be done). Fruits must be weight at
pickingmaturity.
Quality
Multiple traits have to be measured to estimate the quality of a fruit:
Sugar content : measured with refractometer
Flavor: usually panel-taste at later stage of development (in earlier stages breeding
lines are evaluated in terms of good vs. bad-taste for a gross selection)
Texture, color, and seedness can be measured by simple observations at every
generations
Size, shape, color: determined by visual evaluation or as explained above for type
Adaptability
Selection for adaptability usually should be done at the beginning of the breeding program by
choosing as parents of the base population adapted or adaptable lines for the area of
marketing of the future varieties. In later stages adaptability can be tested in grower-trials
directly (see below).
Resistance
Resistance to diseases and insects is so important in modern varieties that several specific
tests (ranging between the extreme of biological assay and DNA analysis) have been recently
63
developed: the techniques are becoming day by day more accurate and difficult to perform so
that the cohoperation with professional pathologists, enthomologists and biotechnologists is
vital for the modern breeder. Usually every breeder includes in his team a professional
pathologist specialized on cucurbits; enthomologists and biotechnologists, however, can be
hired as consultant and in the seed-companies usually they assist all the different breeding
programs. The recent trend is to include in the breeding-team directly also biotechnologist
for the exploration of marker-assisted selection techniques.
Resistance to physiological stresses in watermelon almost entirely relates to hollowheart
susceptibility: the only available screening method is the observation of the fruits all the way
through the breeding program: the genetic base of this problem is not yet known and the
environmental variance component is thought to be very high but further analysis are
required to better understand how to simulate stressing conditions to test the germplasm or
how to detect directly the genetic susceptibility with molecular or phenotypic markers.
Resistance to adverse environmental conditions are included in selection for adaptability (see
above).
The data can be collected on paper even though the general opinion is that direct recording
on laptop computers is more reliable because it decreases the sources of error during retyping
for statistical analysis or for preparation of the following breeding-plans.
64
Example of electronic data-sheet for cultivars evaluation
65
Trials of watermelons can be devided in the following general categories:
Developmental trials of early generations: run directly at the breeding farm or in other
farms in different locations but still part of the breeding program
Breeding trials of advanced generations: run in grower-fields; they can include:
o Breeding lines: tested in small replicated plots
o Lines for release: tested in long plots at grower-field density and plot width
Public trials: every generation can be sent for evaluation by public breeders in their
own trials. This is a very interesting source of verification of the breeding lines but it
present some problem to the private breeder: 1) trialing methods are not yet
standardized among public breeders, 2) the competitors will be able to see the lines
and read the measurements and evaluations (even though it is possible to pay a higher
price per plot and keep the data reserved).
Grower trials: usually growers are very cohoperative in including in their fields some
plots for trialing: sales agents for private companies and extension agents for public
breeders are the best cohoperators to organize and run these type of trials; usually the
breeder visits himself the plots only for evaluation at harvest.
66
Obvious recommendation would be to spend as much time as needed in evaluating the plots
and take every possible measurement of interest maybe along with a digital picture of the
fruits (the picture should include at once all the traits that can be of interest for a future visual
evaluation).
Correct layout for digital imaging of evaluated lines
67
Equipments, Organization, and Protocols
Every breeder would be able to organize his own program in a different way. In this chapter
some suggestions are reported and might be used as guide-lines to develop own protocols and
techniques.
Nursery
Besides certain locations where it is possible to gain 3 generations of watermelons in
openfields, usually the combination field-greenhouse is the most common for the breeding
nursery.
The fields can be used for testing and for crossing watermelons. For testing purposes it has
been demonstrated (Neppl et al., data not published) that small plots with single rows are
sufficient. For intercrossing breeders use different designs but they all follow some common
rules of thumb:
Open-pollination: maximize mixture of the vines by reducing inter-row distance;
Manual-pollination: increase distance in the row and between rows to be able to trace
plants and flag correctly the flowers.
Plants in crossing fields should be transplanted on plastic mulch with drip-irrigation; in
testing fields if seeds are available in high quantity the watermelons can be seeded directly.
It is very important to keep the weed population under control and to constantly scout the
fields for detecting eventual disease development or insects damages.
The most of the watermelon acreage in the U.S. is cultivated with plastic mulches and
dripirrigation so that all the tests should be run in this fashion: however, in developing
cultivars for other countries this might be incorrect and the cultivation techniques should be
68
adjusted to the prevalent in the marketing-areas of the future cultivars (i.e. in Europe most of
the watermelons are cultivated in plastic-houses).
In the greenhouse the plants should be grown in pots or plastic disposable bags (3 gallons
usually is a good size) and plants have to be grown on trellises as single vine and trained and
pruned often. With wild accessions sometimes the fertile flowers are on the laterals so that
pruning should be delayed after fruit-setting. The lateral close to the set-flower should not be
pruned but tipped at the 2
nd
true-leaf. Tips are very delicate and their excision would
compromise the possibility to get flowers: therefore, training and pruning become very
delicated operations. Plants need a specific fertirrigation program depending on the soil-
mixture that is used.
Greenhouse nursery
69
Germination can be favored in cold seasons by using heating-mats under the flats
(soilT=80F) Plants are transplanted from 6x12 square-holes flats into the pots at the 1
st
trueleaf stage.
Germination Nursery Transplanting in Pot
During the Winter and with cloudy weather in certain areas artificial illumination might be
useful to favor pollinations otherwise very difficult.
The greenhouse should be kept free from insects and pathogen: once a pathogen as been
established in a greenhouse is very challenging to sanitate the nursery completely and
sometimes the whole destiny of a breeding program depends on it. Chemical control of pests
should be as precise and accurate as possible and insect-damage should be prevented by
adding granular insecticide to the pot at transplanting and keeping yellow chromotropic traps
on every section of the greenhouse (they prevent white-flies, aphids, and thrips).
70
Once the fruits reach the size of a soft-ball they have to be suspended to the trellises to avoid
the breakage of the petiol and the loss of the fruit: a bag made of cheesecloth might be the
best material to use.
Fruits into Cheese-Cloth Bags
Harvest and Seed-Treatments
The fruits should be harvested on a calendar base (about 30 days after pollination), surface-
sterilized with clorine, rinsed and cut. The flesh and the seeds should be left in single
buckets for 24 hours because fermentation helps to kill pathogens: if the fruit contains not
enough juice or if there is urgence to rinse and dry the seeds sooner than the next day,
fermentation can be helped with artificial enzymes.
71
One-day Harvest Fruit-Sterilization
Single-Fruit Extraction Flesh Fermentation
Fruits from the fields can be cut and seeds extracted as above for single-fruit extraction or
can be cut in pieces and dumped in a bulk-extractor for seed-increase purposes: it is
important to have a lot of fruits and with a lot of seeds per fruit because the bulk-extractor
wastes about a 10% of the seeds. The seeds need to be fermented in trash-cans for 24 hours
72
as above and then rinsed: a sluice (small version of the industrial types) might be very
helpful.
Bulk-Extraction in Process Sluice
After extraction seeds must be dried in an air-flow dryer for no-more than 12 hours
(T=80F).
The seeds have to be kept free from heat and humidity: paper envelopes and wood sorters or
tissue-bags are the best containers and a cooler with controlled environmental conditions
would be the best long-term storage-facility (T=38F and RH=25%). A broad-spectrum
fungicide (i.e. Captan) should be added in small quantity to the seeds to prevent formation of
molds and survival of pathogens.
73
Dryer Seed-Storage
Single-Fruit Seeds Bulk-seeds
Record Keeping
Every breeder usually has his own codification to identify his seeds so that it is impossible to
determine what is the best way to keep record of the genealogy of a nursery. In this chapter
is presented the technique used from several years by the Cucurbit Breeding Group at N.C.
State University: this method is in use since 1979 and has always given very good results.
74
Every generation (nursery cycle) is projected in advance on a pollination-plan that contains
all the informations about each experiment, each plot, and each cross- or self-pollination that
is needed.
The pollination-plan reports also the seed-source from the previous generation (the
cross- or self-pollination number of the previous generation)
Every year the plot-numbers start from 0 and are associated with the binumeric year
code
Every plant (usually 1 plant=1plot) is marked with is plot-number which is later
reported also on the pollination tag as explained above
At harvest seeds are counted and the number is recorded on the pollination-plan
75
Example of Pollination-Plan
76
The pollination-plan should be completed also with the calendar of the cycle (dates of
seeding, transplanting, pollination, and harvest).
With the new technologies now available the whole process could be made more efficient:
pollination-tags could be substituted by bar-codes and every technician could carry a hand-
held computer (i.e. Palm)connected to a wireless network to imput the date of pollination of
every other practice; the calendar of harvest could be calculated by a main database with
regards to different parameters per each cultigen, plot, greenhouse range, fertirrigation
program, etc. and then downloaded to each hand-held computer every day for the harvest.
The same bar-code could be printed on the seed-envelopes and the informations (seed-
number or other ratings) cold be imput directly in the main database with the hand-held
computers during fruit-cutting or seed-packaging.
The general data-base should report data of every introduction used in the breeding program:
it might indicate the general history of the introduction itself, the dates of introduction in the
breeding program, the codes of the experiment in which it has been included, and notes
concerning particular traits of interest or specific needs for cultivation, pollination and seed-
set.
77
Hybrid Seeds Production
Hybrid seeds production usually is not of any concern for the private breeder because
seedcompanies have specific units that are devoted to the optimization of this operation.
Since most of the seedcompanies produce their hybrid seeds in areas of the world where
labor is very cheap, they mostly rely on manual emasculation of the female parent and
tagging of the female pollinated flowers. Another technique often adopted for the same
reasons above is hand-pollination.
Incorporation of recessive phenotypic markers in the inbreds used as parents is an alternative
but it implies selection of the hybrid seedlings and it is not feasible in a commercial scenario.
Male-sterility would become of greater importance soon because the recent presence of
seedborne diseases in the usual seedproduction areas of the world are forcing the
seedcompanies to move their production units in areas with greater labor costs.
Malesterility in watermelon is genic and there as been no reports yet of cytoplasmic or
cytogenic malesterility: further research is needed in this area.
78
Sources of Information
Breeders need to remain up-to-date on every aspect of their crop. There several sources of
information available: the most important for the U.S. are listed below.
Table 14. Suggested sources of information for breeders

Source Notes

Meetings and Conferences
ISHS World Meeting Every 4 years
ASHS National Meeting Yearly
ASHS Regional Meetings Yearly
Watermelon Breeders Meeting Yearly
Cucurbitaceae Every 4 years
Eucarpia Every 4 years
Journals and Publications
J. of American Society for Horticultural Science
American J. of Plant Pathology
Cucurbit Genetics Cooperative Report
U.S.D.A. Agricultural Statistics
Associations
National Watermelon Association
National Watermelon Promotion Board
National watermelon associations: go to (Maynard, 2001)

79
Conclusions and perspectives
The watermelon is a crop of always increasing interest and different types are now avaliable
on and requested by the american market. Future breeding efforts will be directed towards
both the creation of new types, particularly for nitsch markets, and the improvement of the
current types.
New types will have different flesh colors for the processing market such as yellow and
orange flesh fruits. Size and shape will be variable but more directed towards smaller sizes
for the fresh market and both elongated and round fruits, seeded and seedless. There are now
on the market some new very small watermelons (round, 3 to 5 lbs, striped, seedless) called
generally "Personal Size". Yellow watermelons are already successfully present on the
market but higher levels of sugars are needed and there is not yet an elongated yellow type
which will fit very well in the consumers needs for a fruit easy to carry and store. In general
elongated fruits will be more valuable if their ends will be flat instead of pointed, because
shippers report high damages to fruits due to contact with pointed ends of other fruits.
However, the major priority for breeding will be disease resistance with particular attention
to gummy stem blight, Fusarium wilt race 2, and powdery mildew. Second priority will be
breeding for rootstock production with particular attention to rootstocks resistant to
nematodes and soilborne pathogens: from 2005 no more fumigations will be allowed in the
U.S. so that these parassites and pathogens will increase fastly to dangerous levels if
resistance will not be present in the cultivated plants. In absence of resistance the
watermelon will be cultivated with rotations of about 6 to 8 years.
From an academic prospective, a better understanding of the genetics of the species will be
necessary and biotechnology will become increasingly more important for a targeted strategy
80
in breeding for disease resistance. Populations used for genome mapping will be necessary
moved from the actual ones that includes 'NH Midget' as adapted parental line to new ones
including 'Allsweet' as a parent, since most of the commercial varieties in the U.S. are
related to the latter.
81
Literature Cited
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Chambliss, O.L., H.T. Erickson, and C.M. Jones. 1968. Genetic control of bitterness in
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Eigsti, O.J. 1979. Improvement of watermelons with polyploids. Cuc. Gen. Coop. Rep. 2:25-
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Henderson, W.R. 1991. Gene List for Watermelon. Cuc. Gen. Coop. Rep. 14:129-138.
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