Hort. Sci. (Prague), 2024, 51(3):189-201 | DOI: 10.17221/5/2023-HORTSCI

Molecular, morphological and phytochemical characterization of some watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.) genotypesOriginal Paper

Ömer Faruk Coşkun1, Osman Gülşen2
1 Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Agriculture, Hatay Mustafa Kemal University, Hatay, Türkiye
2 Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Agriculture, Erciyes University, Kayseri, Türkiye

Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.) is grown in tropical and temperate regions and an economically important crop. Characterization studies of watermelon may provide valuable information for breeding and research programs. The objectives of this study were to determined of morphological, phytochemical, genetic diversity and population structure among the watermelons. Morphological and phytochemical variations including sugar contents were determined in 96 watermelon genotypes grown in the field. The average number of fruits per plant was determined as 2.52 ± 0.06, and the average yield was determined as 6.2 ± 0.11 kg/m2. The mean total sugar was determined as 6.27 ± 0.12 %, and the lowest value was measured in genotype 234 (1.1%); the highest value was measured in genotype number 184 (8.66%). A total of 62 SSR (Simple Sequence Repeat) primers were used in the molecular characterization study. The similarity coefficients among the 96 genotypes varied between 0.23 and 0.99. This study indicates that there is a wide morphological and sugar parameters variation among watermelon genotypes but narrow molecular genetic diversity. It also provides useful information for watermelon breeding studies.

Keywords: watermelon; characterization; genetic; SSR; sugar analysis

Received: January 10, 2023; Revised: December 6, 2023; Accepted: December 12, 2023; Prepublished online: September 11, 2024; Published: September 29, 2024  Show citation

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Coşkun ÖF, Gülşen O. Molecular, morphological and phytochemical characterization of some watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.) genotypes. Hort. Sci. (Prague). 2024;51(3):189-201. doi: 10.17221/5/2023-HORTSCI.
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