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2015 Melon Cultivar Evaluations

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2015 North Carolina State University Melon Cultivar Evaluations
Hort. Series #215

Principle Investigators

Jonathan R. Schultheis, Professor & Vegetables Extension Specialist, Keith Starke, Research Associate, and W. Bradfred Thompson, Research Specialist, Department of Horticultural Science, N.C. State University, Raleigh, NC.

General Cultural Practices

All melon trials were grown using recommended practices for commercial melon production in North Carolina. All plots in the study were under black plastic mulch and fertigated with drip irrigation. Furthermore, pesticides used on all plots were chemicals labeled for use on that crop, (2015North Carolina Agricultural Chemicals Manual).

Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Phillip Winslow (Superintendent) and Chris Lee (Horticulture Supervisor), Cunningham Research Station, Kinston, NC, as well as the research station personnel in establishing, maintaining, and harvesting the melon cultigen evaluation trial. We want to acknowledge the following for their assistance with the trial: Dennis Adams, Victoria Cox, Brooke Hadley, Elizabeth (Libby) Indermaur, Laura Page, and Dayne Shelor. The cooperation and support of Bayer Crop Science, DP Seeds, Origene Seeds, Rijk Zwaan, Sakata Seed, Seminis Seed Company, and Syngenta Seeds, Inc. were also appreciated. We also want to acknowledge, support for this study was provided by the US Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, for the CucCAP Specialty Crop Research Initiative grant under award number 2015-51181-24285.

Disclaimer

This publication presents data from the cultivar evaluation trial conducted during 2015. Information in this report is believed to be reliable but should not be relied upon as the sole source of information. Limited accompanying detail is included but excludes some pertinent information, which may aid interpretation.

2015 Muskmelon Cultigen Study; Cunningham Research Station, Kinston, NC

Introduction

The acreage of melon production is not published for North Carolina in recent years. However, total harvested muskmelon/cantaloupe acreage in 2012 in the United States was reported to be 64,050*. Further reporting listed average yield per acre in the United States to be 265 cwt, with average price per cwt being $19.20. Total value in the U.S. cantaloupe/muskmelon (orange flesh melons) industry was also reported to be about $325 million. Production acreage in North Carolina is believed to be between 3,000 to 4,000 acres. Most melons grown in North Carolina are the eastern type with the principle cultivar grown being Athena for the past 20 years. In addition to the eastern type cantaloupe/muskmelon, other orange flesh melons being grown in much small acreages include Extended Shelf Life (ESL) melons, often termed Harper melons,; and Italian or Tuscan melons. The ESL melons, as the name suggests, will hold for a longer period than the eastern type melons. ESL melons are more difficult to determine when ready for harvest and this in large part has delayed wide spread adoption of this melon type. The flesh in commercially grown ESL melons is usually firmer and sweeter than eastern melon types. The Italian type melon tends to split easier than the ESL or eastern types. In spite of these weaknesses with ESL and Italian type melons, there has been some success in growing and marketing these newer melon types by North Carolina growers. A new version of the eastern melon type was introduced into the 2015 North Carolina melon cultivar trial. Two of them were Rijk Zwaan lines (34-741 and 34-742), and 1 from Seminis (SV5196). These fruit have slight ribbing, with firmer flesh than ‘Athena’. These new types will also exhibit a straw or tan rind color and will slip at harvest making it easier to determine when the fruits are ready to harvest. A total of 20 advanced lines or cultivar entries (cultigens) were placed in the 2015 study by 7 seed companies to evaluate the melon entries for yield, earliness, and various other qualities. The entries were as follows.

  • Rijk Zwaan (4) – 34-741, 34-742, Caribbean Gold, Caribbean King
  • Syngenta Seeds (1) – Athena
  • Sakata Seed (4) – Atlantis, Avatar, Infinite Gold, Timeless Gold
  • Seminis Seed (3) – Banzai, Florida, SV5196MF
  • Origene Seeds (2) – Diva, Restart
  • DP Seeds (2) – El Gordo, Napoli
  • Bayer Crop Science (4) – Maxi-East, Dura-West, NUN 26367, Sweet East

*Data from: The USDA library at Cornell University

Materials and Methods

Commercial seed companies were contacted in February and March to obtain seed for the muskmelon cultigen evaluation trial. All seed were acid treated for bacterial fruit blotch on 8 April 2015. Seed were sown into 72 cell Poly trays to grow transplants (Hummert Int.; Earth City, MO) on 15 April. The planting medium used was a Fine Germinating Mix, a commercial soil less mix (Carolina Soil Company; Kinston, NC). A complete fertilizer (10-10-20 at 600 lbs/ac) was broadcast applied over the entire area that was planted on 14 April. Preplant fertilizer was incorporated by discing the field and Telone II Fumigant (6.5 gal/ac) was soil injected in tandem with laying black polyethylene plastic 2(0.70 mil thick high density plastic film, 48 inches wide; B.B. Hobbs, Clinton, NC) on 23 April. Herbicide products, Dual (1.5 pt/ac) and Sinbar (3 oz/ac), were applied in the row middles for pre-emergent weed control on 27 April. Muskmelon transplants were approximately 3 weeks old when placed in a “hardening” greenhouse for 7 days prior to being established in the field on 7 May. A starter fertilizer solution was applied at transplant (0.5 lb/50 gal H2O of 20-20-20 fertilizer, water soluble). Plot size was one row with 10 plants per plot (20 ft long) with in-row spacing of 2 feet and between row spacing of 5 feet. Four replications were used in the muskmelon cultigen trial. Plots with missing plants were replanted approximately 7 days after transplanting to achieve 100% stand, in most cases. Drip irrigation was utilized (NETAFIM, 12 inch spacing, 0.24 gal/hr; NETAFIM, Tel Aviv, Israel) throughout the growing season. Fertigation, using a 4-0-8 liquid fertilizer, was initiated 12 days after planting and applied weekly. The first application of liquid fertilizer (1 gal) was applied through the drip tape on 19 May and the last application (1 gal) 28 July. In this trial fertilizer was either applied preplant or through fertigation. Total amount of fertilizer applied through fertigation during the growing season was 41.4 lb Nand 82.8 lb K2O. The total amount of fertilizer applied for the entire growing season was 101.4 lb/ac N, 60 lb/ac P2O5, and 202.8 lb/ac K2O.

Insecticides were applied every 7 to 10 days as a preventative measure beginning 22 May and again on the following dates: 29 May 2015; 12 and 26 June 2015; 2, 11, 17 and 26 July 2015. The following products were alternated during consecutive spray applications to avoid insect and mite resistance: Permethrin, Asana, Sniper, Venom and Coragen. Similarly, the following fungicide products were used; Tenn-Cop, Procure, Gavel, Zanpro, Presidio, Tanos, Pristine, Previcur Flex, Quadris, Manzate, Kocide and Ridomil Gold; and applied on the following dates; 12 and 26 June 2015; 2, 11, 17 and 26 July 2015.

There were a total of 13 harvests for the muskmelon trial. The first harvest was 2 July 2015 and the thirteenth harvest was 31 July 2015. Harvests were made three times per week on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Each fruit was harvested when ripe and weighed. Evaluations of each melon entry included yield, fruit size, production earliness, soluble solids (using a digital refractometer), fruit shape and size, exterior and interior descriptions (rind, length/width ratio, and flesh color), and interior flesh firmness. Flesh firmness was measured (recorded in pounds) by using a Penetrometer FT 011 with a 5/16” plunger tip, (QA Supplies LLC, Norfolk, Va.). Melon samples were obtained by cutting the center of the fruit, lengthwise, from the fruit’s stem end to blossom end. Pressure measurements were then taken between the cavity and rind of the fruit on each half of the cut fruit. The reported measures on flesh firmness are an average of the two sample areas from five fruit per plot (10 total fruit halves were measured for flesh firmness per plot). Most of the quality measurements were taken when the melons became ripe between the second and seventh harvests.

The field and growing conditions throughout the harvest period were fairly typical for North Carolina. There was regular rainfall throughout the month of June and parts of July, as well as, optimal ambient temperatures that allowed for good plant growth and fruit set within all the cultigen plots.

Results

Some of the highest, early yielding entries which exceeded over 500 cwt in the first three harvests were Athena, Avatar, NUN 26367 and SV5196MF (Table 1). Based on fruit numbers, the highest, early yielding melon entries which exceeded 7500 fruit per acre included 34-741, 34-753, Athena, Napoli, and SV5196MF (Table 2). The highest percentage of fruit produced from the early yielding entries fell into the 3 to 7 pound fruit range, the most desirable marketable size category for muskmelons (Tables 3&4). The highest yielding mid-season (harvests 4 to 8) entries included Caribbean Gold, El Gordo, Dura-West and Re-Start (Tables 5&6). Most fruit produced from these entries were between 3 to 7 pounds; however, an exception to this included El Gordo which had nearly 90% of its fruit size over 9 pounds. Fruits this size would be too large for most growers producing muskmelons in North Carolina and likely most other U.S. shipping producing areas (Tables 7&8). Some of the latest yielding entries (harvests 9 to 12) were Diva and Restart (Tables 9&10). Diva produced fruit that averaged 6.5 pounds and Restart produced fruit that averaged 4.9 pounds (Table 9). The highest yielding entries across the entire production season in terms of tonnage (>800 cwt) were Atlantis, Avatar, Diva, Infinite Gold, Maxi-East, NUN 26367, and Sweet East (Table 13). The greatest number of fruits produced over the entire production season were Banzai and Florida (Table 14). These entries produced the lowest average fruit weight of all the cultivars or advanced lines evaluated weighing about 2.5 pounds per fruit (Table 13). El Gordo produced extremely large fruits with average sized fruit weighing in excess of 12 pounds. Other mid-season cultivars included Florida, Infinite Gold, and Timeless Gold (Table 17).

As far as quality of the fruit (Table 18), some of the sweetest entries which averaged 14.0 or more soluble solids included 34-741, Banzai, and Florida. The sweetest entry that far exceeded all other entries was Caribbean King at 15.9 soluble solids. Some of the firmest flesh entries were 34-741, Banzai, Caribbean Gold, Florida, and Dura-West. Both Banzai and Florida had the darkest orange flesh color.

Many of the new entries showed excellent potential for yield and quality in North Carolina’s growing environment. Some of the promising new entries included 34-741, 34-742, Dura-West, SV5196, and Sweet East. Other cultivars that have been available for a longer period of time that yielded well with good quality fruit included Athena, Atlantis, Caribbean Gold, Caribbean King, Banzai, Florida, Napoli, Infinite Gold, and Timeless Gold.

The melon industry has been in transition the past several years and there are new melon categories. Traditional categories are western shippers and eastern melons. Today, there are Italian or Tuscan melons, and Extended Shelf Life types, many of which are being grown and sold in North Carolina.

Financial Support

In addition to the seed companies, this program has been supported by the College of Life & Agricultural Sciences, the North Carolina Agricultural Research Service, and the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service.

Figure 1. 2015 Eastern Melon Pictures

Table 1. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields, Cumulative fruit weight, (x100), per acre for early1 season harvests 1 – 3. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit Size Category

Cumulative Totals 2

Avg. Wt. 3

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 6.1 364.5 0.0 0.0 370.5 4.7
34-742 4.7 425.7 15.5 0.0 445.8 5.3
Athena 5.4 402.6 81.2 21.2 510.5 5.8
Atlantis 2.6 190.6 77.0 44.0 314.1 6.9
Avatar 0.0 110.6 108.9 294.4 513.9 8.8
Banzai 61.9 10.4 0.0 0.0 72.3 2.5
Caribbean Gold 2.4 244.7 0.0 0.0 247.1 5.1
Caribbean King 2.9 403.9 253.7 0.0 432.2 5.2
Diva – – – – – – – – – – – –
El Gordo 0.0 0.0 9.6 134.5 144.4 12.0
Florida 45.4 4.0 0.0 0.0 49.4 2.1
Infinite Gold 0.0 62.6 16.2 0.0 78.8 6.0
Maxi-East 0.0 133.4 79.2 44.2 256.7 7.0
Napoli 0.0 429.3 0.0 0.0 429.3 4.9
DuraWest 0.0 64.1 16.2 0.0 80.3 5.9
NUN 26367 0.0 236.1 200.5 65.3 501.9 6.8
Re-Start – – – – – – – – – – – –
SV5196MF 0.0 391.9 101.3 22.8 515.9 5.7
Sweet East 2.1 203.3 225.9 115.9 547.1 7.3
Timeless Gold 0.0 128.1 0.0 0.0 128.1 5.0
Average 7.4 211.4 65.8 41.2 313.2 5.9
LSD (0.05) 19.1 123.9 93.5 86.0 121.4 – –

1 Early harvests (1-3) : 1 – 8 July (55 – 59 days after planting).
2 Cumulative total includes all fruit size categories.
3 Average fruit weights were determined using total cumulative weights and numbers from respective harvests.

Table 2. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields, Cumulative fruit number per acre for early1 season harvests 1 – 3. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

Cumulative Totals2

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 218 7623 0 0 7841
34-742 218 8059 218 0 8494
Athena 218 7296 1089 218 8821
Atlantis 109 3267 980 436 4792
Avatar 0 1851 1307 2723 5881
Banzai 2614 327 0 0 2940
Caribbean Gold 109 4901 0 0 5009
Caribbean King 109 7950 327 0 8385
Diva – – – – – – – – – –
El Gordo 0 0 109 1089 1198
Florida 2287 109 0 0 2396
Infinite Gold 0 1089 218 0 1307
Maxi-East 0 2287 980 436 3703
Napoli 0 8712 0 0 8712
DuraWest 0 1089 218 0 1307
NUN 26367 0 4247 2505 653 7405
Re-Start – – – – – – – – – –
SV5196MF 0 7732 1307 218 9257
Sweet East 109 3485 2831 1198 7623
Timeless Gold 0 2614 0 0 2614
Average 333 4035 672 387 5427
LSD (0.05) 992 2400 1180 842 2302

1 Early harvests (1-3) : 1 – 8 July (55 – 59 days after planting).
2 Cumulative total includes all fruit size categories.
** Each number for fruit size category and cumulative total is rounded to the nearest whole number. **

Table 3. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields; Percent1 of fruit weight per indicated size category – Early harvests. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 2 98 0 0
34-742 1 95 3 0
Athena 1 79 16 4
Atlantis 1 61 25 14
Avatar 0 22 21 57
Banzai 86 14 0 0
Caribbean Gold 1 99 0 0
Caribbean King 1 93 59 0
Diva – – – – – – – –
El Gordo 0 0 7 93
Florida 92 8 0 0
Infinite Gold 0 79 21 0
Maxi-East 0 52 31 17
Napoli 0 100 0 0
DuraWest 0 80 20 0
NUN 26367 0 47 40 13
Re-Start – – – – – – – –
SV5196MF 0 76 20 4
Sweet East 0 37 41 21
Timeless Gold 0 100 0 0
Average 10 63 17 12

1 Percentages for each fruit size category for each cultivar were rounded to the nearest whole number.

Table 4. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields; Percent1 of fruit number per indicated size category – Early harvests. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 3 97 0 0
34-742 3 95 3 0
Athena 2 83 12 2
Atlantis 2 68 20 9
Avatar 0 31 22 46
Banzai 89 11 0 0
Caribbean Gold 2 98 0 0
Caribbean King 1 95 4 0
Diva – – – – – – – –
El Gordo 0 0 9 91
Florida 95 5 0 0
Infinite Gold 0 83 17 0
Maxi-East 0 62 26 12
Napoli 0 100 0 0
DuraWest 0 83 17 0
NUN 26367 0 57 34 9
Re-Start – – – – – – – –
SV5196MF 0 84 14 2
Sweet East 1 46 37 16
Timeless Gold 0 100 0 0
Average 11 67 12 10

1 Percentages for each fruit size category for each cultivar were rounded to the nearest whole number.

Table 5. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields, Cumulative fruit weight, (x 100), per acre for midseason harvests 4 – 8. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

    Fruit size category

Cumulative Totals 2

Avg. Wt. 3

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 0.0 149.5 16.7 0.0 166.2 5.3
34-742 0.0 124.9 50.5 0.0 175.4 6.0
Athena 2.3 149.5 65.3 10.6 227.7 5.9
Atlantis 2.8 252.5 187.4 20.7 463.5 6.4
Avatar 2.7 40.3 70.2 187.4 300.7 8.9
Banzai 240.6 49.3 0.0 0.0 289.9 2.4
Caribbean Gold 15.6 377.2 0.0 0.0 392.8 4.8
Caribbean King 0.0 140.5 31.9 0.0 172.4 5.7
Diva 0.0 175.6 116.7 41.8 334.1 6.8
El Gordo 0.0 37.9 62.9 761.2 862.1 12.0
Florida 281.7 50.0 0.0 0.0 331.7 2.6
Infinite Gold 2.5 602.3 82.1 0.0 686.9 5.6
Maxi-East 0.0 123.3 197.7 190.6 511.5 7.9
Napoli 12.7 206.5 0.0 0.0 219.2 4.7
DuraWest 2.4 415.5 195.3 10.1 623.2 6.1
NUN 26367 1.5 137.8 157.5 20.4 317.1 6.8
Re-Start 0.0 379.4 0.0 0.0 379.4 5.2
SV5196MF 3.2 54.7 8.6 0.0 66.4 5.7
Sweet East 9.8 138.7 50.9 43.2 242.6 6.1
Timeless Gold 2.9 512.1 8.6 0.0 523.6 5.1
Average 29.0 205.9 65.1 64.3 364.3 6.0
LSD (0.05) 18.0 131.1 64.8 114.9 157.5 1.0

1 Mid harvests (4-8) : 10 July – 20 July (68 – 78 days after planting).
2 Cumulative total includes all fruit size categories.
3 Average fruit weights were determined using total cumulative weights and numbers from respective harvests.

Table 6. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields, Cumulative fruit number per acre for mid1season harvests 4 – 8. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

Cumulative2 Total

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 0 2940 218 0 3158
34-742 0 2287 653 0 2940
Athena 109 2831 871 109 3920
Atlantis 109 4465 2396 218 7187
Avatar 109 871 871 1634 3485
Banzai 10563 1525 0 0 12088
Caribbean Gold 653 7514 0 0 8168
Caribbean King 0 2614 436 0 3049
Diva 0 3267 1525 436 5227
El Gordo 0 762 762 5663 7187
Florida 11326 1525 0 0 12850
Infinite Gold 109 10999 1089 0 12197
Maxi-East 0 2178 2505 1851 6534
Napoli 545 4356 0 0 4901
DuraWest 109 7514 2505 109 10237
NUN 26367 109 2396 1960 218 4683
Re-Start 0 7514 0 0 7514
SV5196MF 109 1089 109 0 1307
Sweet East 436 2396 653 436 3920
Timeless Gold 109 10019 109 0 10237
Average 1220 3953 833 534 6539
LSD (0.05) 965 2596 837 880 2840

1 Mid harvests (4-8) : 10 July – 20 July (68 – 78 days after planting).
2 Cumulative total includes all fruit size categories.
** Each number for fruit size category and cumulative total is rounded to the nearest whole number. **

Table 7. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields; Percent1 of fruit weight per indicated size category – Mid Season harvests. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 0 90 10 0
34-742 0 71 29 0
Athena 1 66 29 5
Atlantis 1 54 40 4
Avatar 1 13 23 62
Banzai 83 17 0 0
Caribbean Gold 4 96 0 0
Caribbean King 0 81 19 0
Diva 0 53 35 13
El Gordo 0 4 7 88
Florida 85 15 0 0
Infinite Gold 0 88 12 0
Maxi-East 0 24 39 37
Napoli 6 94 0 0
DuraWest 0 67 31 2
NUN 26367 0 43 50 6
Re-Start 0 100 0 0
SV5196MF 5 82 13 0
Sweet East 4 57 21 18
Timeless Gold 1 98 2 0
Average 10 61 18 12

1 Percentages for each fruit size category for each cultivar were rounded to the nearest whole number.

Table 8. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields; Percent1 fruit number per indicated size category – Mid Season harvests. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 0 93 7 0
34-742 0 78 22 0
Athena 3 72 22 3
Atlantis 2 62 33 3
Avatar 3 25 25 47
Banzai 87 13 0 0
Caribbean Gold 8 92 0 0
Caribbean King 0 86 14 0
Diva 0 63 29 8
El Gordo 0 11 11 79
Florida 88 12 0 0
Infinite Gold 1 90 9 0
Maxi-East 0 33 38 28
Napoli 11 89 0 0
DuraWest 1 73 24 1
NUN 26367 2 51 42 5
Re-Start 0 100 0 0
SV5196MF 8 83 8 0
Sweet East 11 61 17 11
Timeless Gold 1 98 1 0
Average 11 64 15 9

1 Percentages for each fruit size category for each cultivar were rounded to the nearest whole number.

Table 9. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields, Cumulative fruit weight, (x 100), per acre for late1 season harvests 9 – 12. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

    Fruit size category

Cumulative Totals 2

Avg. Wt. 3

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 2.9 117.8 8.3 27.9 156.9 6.0
34-742 3.2 123.6 26.1 0.0 152.9 5.7
Athena 7.8 16.8 7.7 0.0 32.3 3.7
Atlantis 2.7 33.7 25.9 9.9 72.2 5.2
Avatar 1.5 13.8 17.9 23.1 56.4 7.2
Banzai 102.1 43.6 0.0 0.0 145.7 2.6
Caribbean Gold 0.0 79.8 0.0 0.0 79.8 5.0
Caribbean King 0.0 18.3 7.7 10.7 36.7 6.5
Diva 0.0 321.7 172.1 51.1 544.8 6.5
El Gordo 0.0 7.4 0.0 168.4 175.8 12.8
Florida 90.6 66.8 0.0 0.0 157.4 2.7
Infinite Gold 5.9 53.5 15.8 0.0 75.3 4.9
Maxi-East 0.0 11.1 25.1 20.6 56.9 7.9
Napoli 2.9 92.0 0.0 0.0 94.9 4.4
DuraWest 5.9 59.9 0.0 0.0 65.9 4.4
NUN 26367 0.0 18.2 0.0 0.0 18.2 5.6
Re-Start 5.0 262.0 31.8 0.0 298.8 4.9
SV5196MF 0.0 4.0 8.6 11.8 24.4 8.3
Sweet East 0.0 22.9 17.2 0.0 40.2 6.5
Timeless Gold 0.0 37.7 26.1 10.2 74.1 6.2
Average 11.5 70.2 19.5 16.7 82.6 5.8
LSD (0.05) 18.2 81.9 71.6 114.7 126.8 – –

1 Late harvests (9-12) : 22 – 29 July (80 – 87 days after planting).
2 Cumulative total includes all fruit size categories.
3 Average fruit weights were determined using total cumulative weights and numbers from respective harvests.

Table 10. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields, Cumulative fruit number per acre for late1 season harvests 9 – 12. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

Cumulative Total2

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 109 2287 109 218 2723
34-742 109 2287 327 0 2723
Athena 436 327 109 0 871
Atlantis 109 762 327 109 1307
Avatar 109 327 218 218 871
Banzai 4356 1307 0 0 5663
Caribbean Gold 0 1525 0 0 1525
Caribbean King 0 327 109 109 545
Diva 0 5663 2178 545 8385
El Gordo 0 109 0 1089 1198
Florida 3812 1960 0 0 5772
Infinite Gold 218 1089 218 0 1525
Maxi-East 0 218 327 218 762
Napoli 109 2069 0 0 2178
DuraWest 218 1198 0 0 1416
NUN 26367 0 327 0 0 327
Re-Start 218 5227 436 0 5881
SV5196MF 0 109 109 109 327
Sweet East 0 436 218 0 653
Timeless Gold 0 762 327 109 1198
Average 490 1416 250 136 2292
LSD (0.05) 759 1563 902 809 1938

1 Late harvests (9-12) : 22 – 29 July (80 – 87 days after planting).
2 Cumulative total includes all fruit size categories.
** Each number for fruit size category and cumulative total is rounded to the nearest whole number. **

Table 11. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields; Percent1 of fruit weight per indicated size category – Late harvests. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 2 75 5 18
34-742 2 81 17 0
Athena 24 52 24 0
Atlantis 4 47 36 14
Avatar 3 24 32 41
Banzai 70 30 0 0
Caribbean Gold 0 100 0 0
Caribbean King 0 50 21 29
Diva 0 59 32 9
El Gordo 0 4 0 96
Florida 58 42 0 0
Infinite Gold 8 71 21 0
Maxi-East 0 20 44 36
Napoli 3 97 0 0
DuraWest 9 91 0 0
NUN 26367 0 100 0 0
Re-Start 2 88 11 0
SV5196MF 0 16 35 48
Sweet East 0 57 43 0
Timeless Gold 0 51 35 14
Average 9 58 18 15

1 Percentages for each fruit size category for each cultivar were rounded to the nearest whole number.

Table 12. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields; Percent1 fruit number per indicated size category – Late harvests. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 4 84 4 8
34-742 4 84 12 0
Athena 50 38 13 0
Atlantis 8 58 25 8
Avatar 13 38 25 25
Banzai 77 23 0 0
Caribbean Gold 0 100 0 0
Caribbean King 0 60 20 20
Diva 0 68 26 6
El Gordo 0 9 0 91
Florida 66 34 0 0
Infinite Gold 14 71 14 0
Maxi-East 0 29 43 29
Napoli 5 95 0 0
DuraWest 15 85 0 0
NUN 26367 0 100 0 0
Re-Start 4 89 7 0
SV5196MF 0 33 33 33
Sweet East 0 67 33 0
Timeless Gold 0 64 27 9
Average 13 61 14 11

1 Percentages for each fruit size category for each cultivar were rounded to the nearest whole number.

Table 13. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields1, Cumulative fruit weight, (x 100), per acre across all 12 harvests. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

Cumulative Totals 2

Avg. Wt. 3

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 9 632 25 28 693 5.1
34-742 8 674 92 0 774 5.5
Athena 16 569 154 32 770 5.7
Atlantis 8 478 290 75 850 6.4
Avatar 4 165 197 505 871 8.5
Banzai 405 103 0 0 508 2.5
Caribbean Gold 18 702 0 0 720 4.9
Caribbean King 3 563 65 11 641 5.5
Diva 0 497 289 93 879 6.5
El Gordo 0 45 73 1064 1182 12.4
Florida 418 121 0 0 539 2.6
Infinite Gold 9 718 114 0 841 5.6
Maxi-East 0 268 302 255 825 7.6
Napoli 16 728 0 0 743 4.7
DuraWest 8 539 211 10 769 5.9
NUN 26367 2 392 358 86 837 6.8
Re-Start 5 651 32 0 688 5.1
SV5196MF 3 451 111 35 599 5.7
Sweet East 12 365 294 159 830 6.8
Timeless Gold 3 678 35 10 726 5.2
Average 47.3 467.0 132.1 118.2 764.3 5.9
LSD (0.05) 27.4 143.0 105.0 115.0 134.4 0.7

1 Melons were harvested 3 times per week.
2 Cumulative total includes all fruit size categories.
3 Average fruit weights were determined using total cumulative weights and numbers from respective harvests.

Table 14. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields1, Cumulative fruit per acre number across all 12 harvests. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

Cumulative Total2

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 327 12850 327 218 13721
34-742 327 12632 1198 0 14157
Athena 762 10454 2069 327 13613
Atlantis 327 8494 3703 762 13286
Avatar 218 3049 2396 4574 10237
Banzai 17533 3158 0 0 20691
Caribbean Gold 762 13939 0 0 14702
Caribbean King 109 10890 871 109 11979
Diva 0 8930 3703 980 13613
El Gordo 0 871 871 7841 9583
Florida 17424 3594 0 0 21018
Infinite Gold 327 13177 1525 0 15028
Maxi-East 0 4683 3812 2505 10999
Napoli 653 15137 0 0 15791
DuraWest 327 9801 2723 109 12959
NUN 26367 109 6970 4465 871 12415
Re-Start 218 12959 436 0 13613
SV5196MF 109 8930 1416 327 10781
Sweet East 545 6316 3703 1634 12197
Timeless Gold 109 13395 436 109 14048
Average 2009 9011 1683 1018 13722
LSD (0.05) 1427 2896 1343 1040 2656

1 Melons were harvested 3 times per week.
2 Cumulative total includes all fruit size categories.
** Each number for fruit size category and cumulative total is rounded to the nearest whole number. **

Table 15. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields; Percent1 of fruit weight perindicated size category – Cumulative harvests. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 1 91 3 4
34-742 1 87 12 0
Athena 2 74 20 4
Atlantis 1 56 34 8
Avatar 0 19 23 58
Banzai 80 20 0 0
Caribbean Gold 2 98 0 0
Caribbean King 0 87 10 2
Diva 0 57 34 10
El Gordo 0 4 6 90
Florida 78 22 0 0
Infinite Gold 1 86 13 0
Maxi-East 0 32 36 32
Napoli 2 98 0 0
DuraWest 1 71 27 1
NUN 26367 0 47 42 10
Re-Start 1 95 4 0
SV5196MF 0 74 20 6
Sweet East 1 44 36 19
Timeless Gold 0 93 5 1
Average 9 63 16 12
LSD (0.05) 5 15 13 12

1 Percentages for each fruit size category for each cultivar were rounded to the nearest whole number.

Table 16. Muskmelon cultigen trial yields; Percent1 fruit number per indicated size category – Cumulative harvests. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Fruit size category

< 3 lb

3-7 lb

7.1 – 9 lb

> 9 lb

34-741 3 94 2 2
34-742 2 89 9 0
Athena 5 77 15 3
Atlantis 2 63 28 6
Avatar 2 30 23 45
Banzai 84 16 0 0
Caribbean Gold 5 95 0 0
Caribbean King 1 91 7 1
Diva 0 64 29 7
El Gordo 0 9 9 82
Florida 83 17 0 0
Infinite Gold 2 88 10 0
Maxi-East 0 41 35 24
Napoli 4 96 0 0
DuraWest 2 76 21 1
NUN 26367 0 55 37 7
Re-Start 2 95 3 0
SV5196MF 1 81 15 3
Sweet East 4 52 30 14
Timeless Gold 1 95 4 1
Average 10 66 14 10
LSD (0.05) 5 14 12 10

1 Percentages for each fruit size category for each cultivar were rounded to the nearest whole number.

Table 17. Muskmelon cultigen trial percentage of fruit number harvested among varying harvest intervals. Kinston, NC, 2015.

Cultivar

Pecentage harvested among harvest periods

Early Harvests1

Mid Harvests2

Late Harvests3

34-741 57 23 20
34-742 60 21 19
Athena 65 29 6
Atlantis 36 54 10
Avatar 57 34 9
Banzai 14 58 27
Caribbean Gold 34 56 10
Caribbean King 70 25 5
Diva – – 38 62
El Gordo 13 75 13
Florida 11 61 27
Infinite Gold 9 81 10
Maxi-East 34 59 7
Napoli 55 31 14
DuraWest 10 79 11
NUN 26367 60 38 3
Re-Start – – 55 43
SV5196MF 86 12 3
Sweet East 62 32 5
Timeless Gold 19 73 9
Average 42 46 17

1 Early harvests (1-3) : 1 – 8 July (55 – 59 days after planting).
2 Mid harvests (4-8) : 10 July – 20 July (68 – 78 days after planting).
3 Late harvests (9-12) : 22 – 29 July (80 – 87 days after planting).

Table 18.1. Eastern muskmelon hybrid cultivar trial. Descriptive characteristics and interior fruit quality. Kinston, N.C., 2015.1

Cultivar

Company

SS2

Sutures3

Netting Density4

Netting Type5

34-741 Rijk Zwaan 14.1 1.5 2.3 2.1
34-742 Rijk Zwaan 13.3 1.5 2.0 2.3
Athena Syngenta 12.6 1.5 2.4 2.1
Atlantis Sakata 12.0 1.5 2.2 2.0
Avatar Sakata 12.5 1.5 2.6 2.8
Banzai Seminis 14.2 2.6 2.3 2.4
Caribbean Gold Rijk Zwaan 13.8 1.0 2.9 2.9
Caribbean King Rijk Zwaan 15.9 1.2 2.6 2.3
Diva Origene 11.7 2.6 3.0 3.3
El Gordo DP Seeds 11.6 3.0 2.6 3.0
Florida Seminis 14.0 2.6 2.1 2.1
Infinite Gold Sakata 12.5 1.3 2.8 2.5
Maxi-East Bayer Cropscience 12.9 1.9 2.6 2.8
Napoli DP Seeds 13.0 2.5 2.6 2.5
DuraWest Bayer Cropscience 13.0 1.1 2.6 2.8
NUN 26367 Bayer Cropscience 12.6 1.3 2.9 2.8
Re-Start Origene 11.9 1.3 2.9 2.4
SV5196MF Seminis 13.4 1.5 2.4 2.6
Sweet East Bayer Cropscience 12.3 1.5 2.5 2.5
Timeless Gold Sakata 12.7 1.4 2.8 3.0
Average 13.0 1.7 2.5 2.5
LSD (0.05) 1.1 0.2 0.4 0.4

1 Most measurements were obtained from fruits in harvests 2-6.
2 SS = Indicates sweetness, average of 5 melons per replication (20 total).
3 Sutures: 1 = none, 3=moderate, 5 = deep.
4 Netting Density: 1=none, 5=dense.
5 Netting Type: 1 = fine, 5 =thick ropy.

Table 18.2. Eastern muskmelon hybrid cultivar trial. Descriptive characteristics and interior fruit quality. Kinston, N.C., 2015.1

Cultivar

Stem Scar6

Stem Splitting7

LD8

Flesh Color9

Flesh Firmness10

Cavity11

Shape12

Foliage Cover13

34-741 1.8 1.2 1.23 3.0 6.9 2.1 4.4 4.0
34-742 2.2 1.6 1.26 3.0 3.6 1.8 4.4 3.6
Athena 1.7 1.4 1.15 2.6 2.5 2.0 4.4 3.4
Atlantis 1.1 1.5 1.30 3.8 2.9 2.3 4.5 3.0
Avatar 1.9 2.0 1.17 3.5 3.0 2.9 4.0 2.9
Banzai – – 1.0 1.06 4.3 6.0 1.0 5.0 4.9
Caribbean Gold – – 1.0 1.23 3.3 6.1 1.3 4.8 3.8
Caribbean King – – 1.0 1.15 3.2 4.8 1.3 4.9 4.1
Diva – – 1.0 1.13 2.8 4.4 1.9 4.3 4.9
El Gordo 2.5 3.3 1.18 2.5 3.4 2.9 4.4 4.1
Florida – – 1.0 1.17 4.5 6.5 1.0 4.6 4.8
Infinite Gold 1.3 1.0 1.18 3.0 5.3 1.8 4.9 3.8
Maxi-East 2.1 2.1 1.18 3.0 3.7 2.0 3.8 3.4
Napoli 2.0 3.1 1.26 3.3 3.0 1.8 4.9 3.5
DuraWest 1.4 1.0 1.25 3.4 6.1 1.9 4.9 4.0
NUN 26367 1.8 1.1 1.19 3.5 3.9 1.4 5.0 3.1
Re-Start – – 1.0 1.28 2.7 6.3 1.1 5.0 4.1
SV5196MF 1.8 1.4 1.15 3.0 4.3 1.9 4.5 3.4
Sweet East 2.1 1.9 1.29 2.9 3.6 1.9 4.5 3.6
Timeless Gold – – 1.1 1.18 2.9 5.5 1.4 4.6 4.0
Average 1.8 1.5 1.20 3.2 4.6 1.8 4.6 3.8
LSD (0.05) 0.6 0.5 0.04 0.6 0.8 0.5 0.6 0.8

Stem Scar: 1 = small, 3=medium, 5 = large (unattractive).
7 Stem Splitting: 1= none, 5 = extensive (unmarketable).
8 LD = Length and diameter ratio, average of 5 melons per replication.
9 Flesh color: 1 = pale orange, 5 = deep orange.
10 Flesh Firmness is represented in pounds.
11 Cavity: 1=small, 2=medium, 3=large.
12 Shape: 1=all fruit are various, 3 = majority are the same, 5 = all fruit same shape.
13 Foliage cover: 1 = no fruit covered, 5 = all fruit covered (lush).