Characterization and agronomic traits of some mini watermelon lines

Watermelon is an important vegetable species in terms of amount produced and commercial value in Turkey and worldwide. In our country, the majority of watermelon consumers think that fruit internal quality is directly related with size. However, interest in medium-and mini-sized watermelons is increasing in recent years for reasons such as transport and consumption convenience. In recent years, mini watermelons have begun to replace large watermelons in supermarkets, especially in big cities. The seeds of these varieties are totally imported from abroad. The aim of this study was to start a breeding program to develop seeded and seedless mini watermelon F-1 hybrid cultivars. To this aim, we selfed 38 mini watermelon lines and characterized them according to UPOV criteria. We examined total yield, flower initiation, main stem length, node number on main stem, main stem diameter, fruit weight, fruit length, fruit diameter, rind thickness, total soluble solids, seed number per fruit and 1000-seed weight. According to our results, 38 lines showed different levels of variation from each other for plant, leaf, flower, fruit and seed characters.