Priming techniques and size characteristics of triploid and tetraploid watermelon seed

摘要

Triploid and tetraploid watermelon seed are visually indistinguishable, increasing costs to growers, who cannot market the low-quality 4N melons. Efforts were made to separate 3N and 4N seeds by thickness and weight. Means in both cases were not separable. Successful seed 'priming' would be beneficial to seedless watermelon growers. Seeds from the open-pollinated 4N x 2N cross were primed in solutions of distilled water, polyethylene glycol '8000' (PEG), and potassium nitrate (KNO₃), or left untreated; treated seeds were subsequently dried for either 1 or 7 days. Seeds were scored for germination or emergence in the lab and for emergence under field conditions. Water was better than KNO₃ or PEG, but not always better than the control. One day in treatment was superior to 3 or 6 days; length of drying time was insignificant. In the field trial, treatments did not differ in emergence.