NC State Watermelon Breeding Program Overview

The North Carolina State University watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) breeding program has several areas of research, as shown below:

  • Germplasm collection
  • Germplasm evaluation
    • Resistance to PRSV-W and ZYMV
      • Nihat Guner, Todd Wehner, and Zvezdana Pesic-VanEsbroeck
      • Develop screening methods for testing watermelon for virus resistance
      • Screen the watermelon germplasm collection
      • Determine the inheritance of resistance; find molecular markers
      • Develop resistant inbred lines
    • Resistance to gummy stem blight
      • Gabriele Gusmini, Todd Wehner, and Gerald Holmes
      • Develop screening methods for testing watermelon for virus resistance
      • Screen the watermelon germplasm collection
      • Determine the inheritance of resistance; find molecular markers
      • Develop resistant inbred lines
      • Determine the value of resistance with and without fungicide application
    • Yield improvement
      • Gabriele Gusmini, Melisa Crane, and Todd Wehner
      • Determine suitability of single-plant hills for yield selection
      • Determine optimum plot size
      • Measure border effects in single- and multiple-row plots
      • Determine the heritability of yield
      • Screen the watermelon germplasm collection
    • Mutation breeding
      • Induced variation using EMS and gamma rays
    • Canary yellow and bright orange flesh color
      • Todd Wehner and Tammy Ellington
      • Evaluate and release breeding lines with yield, earliness, quality