Vegetable Crops–PLSC 404Lesson 19, Melons
Instructor:Stephen L. LoveAberdeen R & E CenterP.O. Box 870Aberdeen, ID 83210Phone: 397-4181 Fax: 397-4311Email: [email protected]
What makes the garlic diet so great?
You don’t have to lose weight, your friends stand so far away they think you look smaller.
"The true southern watermelon is a boon apart and not to be mentioned with commoner things. It is chief of this world’s luxuries, king by the grace of God over all the fruits of the earth. When one has tasted it, he knows what the angels eat."
Mark Twain
Watermelon
Taxonomy
Dicotyledon
Family: Cucurbitaceae
Genus and species: Citrullus lanatus
Related species: melons, gourds, luffa, cucumber
Watermelon
Origin and Domestication
Indigenous to south-central Africa
(dry savannah regions)
Ancient cultivation in the Mediterranean
Taken into China from India
Unknown in Europe before 1600 AD
Taken in North America by 1630 AD
Watermelon
Market Evolution
Important source of water for foragers in savannah regions
Became a staple of subsistence farmers – nutrition, water storage
Became an item of local tradeNow an important cash crop used in
worldwide export activity
Watermelon
Major Watermelon Exporters
Exporter Sold to:
Mexico US, Canada
Spain Europe
Turkey Europe
Panama US, Canada
Italy Europe
Watermelon
Use and importance
Nutritionally lean due to high water content
Good source of carbohydrates, energy, and calories
Moderate source of vitamin A and vitamin C
Watermelon
Genetics and breeding
DiploidChromosome number 2n=22Tetraploid forms used to create seedless
melonsHybrids becoming common in the U.S (good
for uniformity rather than vigor and yield)
Watermelon
Production of Seedless Seeds
Tetraploid Parent X Diploid Parent (hand pollination)
Triploid Seed (Produces seedless melon)
Watermelon
Genetics and breeding
The bitter principle
Caused by cucurbitacins
Inherited by a single gene
Toxic to humans at high levels
Human population – tasters and non-tasters
Watermelon
Subsistence Production
Mostly located in AfricaHistorical uses remain in playProduction during dry seasonSupplemental nutrition to
augment staple crops such as cassava, sweet potatoes, yams
Production very labor intensive
Watermelon
Watermelons are among the most popular cultigens for forager-farmers in the Kalahari for the following reasons: "First, they provide a source of water; second, they are relatively drought-resistant, especially when compared to seed crops like sorghum and maize; and third, dried melons are an article of food for both humans and livestock and, after they have been cut into strips and hung on thorn trees to dry, they are easy to store" (Hitchcock and Ebert 1984).
Watermelon
Market Garden Production
Located worldwideOpportunities for market
identified productsSmall producers participate in
export through wholesalersProduction very labor intensiveCrop not amenable to vertical
production systems
Watermelon
Modern-Intensive Production
Located throughout northern hemisphere (Australia)
Practiced in many undeveloped countries
Marketed through major shippers/wholesalers
Seasonal production dictated by priceHarvest labor intensive
Watermelon
Climate and soils
Warm season, tender crop
Cannot withstand frost
Susceptible to chilling injury (<45 degrees)
Optimum temperatures 70-100 degrees
Produces best quality in climates with low humidity
Grows in most soils, earlier in light soils
Watermelon
Flowering and Fruit Set
First pistillate flowers rarely develop fruitPistillate flowers receptive for only a few hoursAbout 1 week between pistillate flowers on any
one branchAdequate pollination by insects essentialImportation of bees can be beneficial
Watermelon
Production – Disease ControlFungal
Fusarium wilt – rotation (6-10 yrs), resistancePhysiological
Blossom-end rot – proper irrigation, calcium
Watermelon
Production - Harvest
(must be harvested ripe, not climacteric)
Harvest indices
Dead fruit peduncle tendril
Yellow ground spot
Bass or hollow thump sound
Presence of “bee stings”
Sampling important for final determination
Watermelon
Quality and GradingBased on: Sweetness (measured as soluble solids,
minimum 10.5 %)SizeColorTextureFreedom from injury or rot
Melon
Domestication
Indigenous to Africa
Secondary centers of diversity in India, Iran, Russia, China
Cultivated in Egypt prior to 2400 BC
Name after Cantaluppi, Italy
Melon - Botany
Eight sub-species groupsCantalupensis – cantaloupe, muskmelonInodorus – winter melon (casaba, honeydew)Flexuous – snake melon, Armenian cucumberConomon – oriental pickling melonChito – mango melonDudaim – pomegranate melonMomordica – Snap melonAgrestis – wild type
Melon - Botany
Eight sub-species groupsCantalupensis – cantaloupe, muskmelonInodorus – winter melon (casaba, honeydew)Flexuous – snake melon, Armenian cucumberConomon – oriental pickling melonChito – mango melonDudaim – pomegranate melonMomordica – Snap melonAgrestis – wild type
Melon - Botany
Eight sub-species groupsCantalupensis – cantaloupe, muskmelonInodorus – winter melon (casaba, honeydew)Flexuous – snake melon, Armenian cucumberConomon – oriental pickling melonChito – mango melonDudaim – pomegranate melonMomordica – Snap melonAgrestis – wild type
Melon - Botany
Eight sub-species groupsCantalupensis – cantaloupe, muskmelonInodorus – winter melon (casaba, honeydew)Flexuous – snake melon, Armenian cucumberConomon – oriental pickling melonChito – mango melonDudaim – pomegranate melonMomordica – Snap melonAgrestis – wild type
Melon - Botany
Eight sub-species groupsCantalupensis – cantaloupe, muskmelonInodorus – winter melon (casaba, honeydew)Flexuous – snake melon, Armenian cucumberConomon – oriental pickling melon Chito – mango melonDudaim – pomegranate melonMomordica – Snap melonAgrestis – wild type
Melon - Botany
Eight sub-species groupsCantalupensis – cantaloupe, muskmelonInodorus – winter melon (casaba, honeydew)Flexuous – snake melon, Armenian cucumberConomon – oriental pickling melonChito – mango melonDudaim – pomegranate melonMomordica – Snap melonAgrestis – wild type
Melon - Botany
Eight sub-species groupsCantalupensis – cantaloupe, muskmelonInodorus – winter melon (casaba, honeydew)Flexuous – snake melon, Armenian cucumberConomon – oriental pickling melonChito – mango melonDudaim – pomegranate melonMomordica – Snap melonAgrestis – wild type
Melon - Botany
Eight sub-species groupsCantalupensis – cantaloupe, muskmelonInodorus – winter melon (casaba, honeydew)Flexuous – snake melon, Armenian cucumberConomon – oriental pickling melonChito – mango melonDudaim – pomegranate melonMomordica – Snap melonAgrestis – wild type
Melon - Botany
Eight sub-species groupsCantalupensis – cantaloupe, muskmelonInodorus – winter melon (casaba, honeydew)Flexuous – snake melon, Armenian cucumberConomon – oriental pickling melonChito – mango melonDudaim – pomegranate melonMomordica – Snap melonAgrestis – wild type
Melon
Producing countries
Produced worldwide
Has achieved its maximum potential and diversity in Asia
China is the largest producer
Melon
Production and Management
Most production market garden and modern-intensive
Less important as a subsistence crop
Production preferentially in Asia, Mediterranean, N. America
Management systems nearly identical to those used for watermelons
Melon
Varieties and Breeding
All C. melo are cross-fertile
Variety type differentiation is market oriented
Most varieties are open pollinated – some hybrids