Comparison of Three Methods of Planting Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) in Varamin

In order to determine the best method of planting for two varieties of watermelon in Varamin (Charleston Gray and Mahbube) through the three methods of planting (direct sowing of seeds, germinated seeds and transplanting of seedlings), a factorial experiment was conducted as a randomized complete block design with 4 replicates during two years (2007-2008) at the Agricultural Research Center, Varamin. The results indicated that planting methods and cultivars had significant effects on all traits including fruit yield, fruit weight and fruit yield of first cutting. Al though the method of transplanting resulted in fruit maturation of 14 days earlier than the direct planting, the mean fruit yield in this method was significantly lower than other methods. Among the various methods of cultivation, the highest mean yield was obtained from the using germinated seed with 30890 kg ha. In the germinated seed method, average fruit weight was significantly higher than the other two methods. The highest number of fruits per plant and the lateral branches were produced in the transplanting method but due to the low weight of fruit, it had the lowest fruit yield per hectare. The highest concentrations of dissolved solids in the fruit (8.2%) were obtained in direct planting. Mahbube cultivar with 28,310 kg ha-1 of fruit yield, out yielded the Charleston Gray cultivar with 26250 kg ha-1. For the latter cultivar, first cutting yield and mean fruit weight were also superior compared to the cultivar Charleston Gray. Considering the significant interaction of cultivar and planting methods, maximum fruit yield (31750 kg ha-1) in this study was achieved with Mahbube cultivar when planted with germinated seed method. The results showed that seed germinated seed method is advantage ous compared with the other methods of planting.