INCIDENCE AND SEVERITY OF WATERMELON (CITRULLUS LANATUS) HOLLOWHEART

Abstract

Watermelon varieties were evaluated for hollowheart (HH) at Bradenton, Leesburg, and Quincy, Fla. HH varied with location, variety, and season. Among icebox varieties, `Sugar Baby', `Baby Gray', and SSDL had less HH than `Tiger Baby', `Minilee', and `Mickylee'. Among standard varieties, `Sangria' and `Jubilee II' had less HH than `Crimson Sweet' and `Royal Sweet'. In 1990, HH was more severe at Quincy than at Bradenton or Leesburg, but the ranking of seedless entries was similar among the locations. HMX 7928, `Nova', `Tycoon', and `Millionaire' had least HH, and `Jack of Hearts', `Ssupersweet 4073', `Ssupersweet 5344', and `King of Hearts' had the most HH. `Jack of Hearts' and `Crimson Sweet' fruit were cut and evaluated in Spring 1993 at 5, 12, 19, 26, and 33 days after anthesis. Incidence of HH was low in 5- and 12-day-old fruit, increased in fruit that were 19 or 26 days old, and did not increase in older fruit. About one-third of fruit from both varieties had some HH. Among the seven entries in another test in Spring 1993, `Tri-X-313' had the least HH and `Crimson Sweet', `Jack of Hearts', and `Jubilee II' had the most.