Yield and Characteristics of Melon Fruits under Different Fertilization Management and Soil Cover

Aims: To evaluate the 'Canary' and 'Hale's Best Jumbo' melon yield and fruit characteristics as a function of fertilization management and soil cover with mulch.

Study Design: The design was a randomized complete block design in a 2x3x2 factorial scheme, with three replications and seven plants per plot.

Place and Duration of Study: The experiment was conducted from June to September 2015, at the Center of Agrarian and Biodiversity Sciences of the Federal University of Cariri, located in the city of Crato, Cariri region, Brazil.

Methodology: Two varieties of melon ('Canary' and 'Hale's Best Jumbo') were studied under three fertilization managements (mineral fertilization via soil, mineral fertilization via soil + organic fertilization and mineral fertilization via soil + foliar fertilization) with the presence or absence of soil cover with polyethylene mulch.

Results: The use of mineral + organic fertilization and mineral + leaf fertilization promoted an increase in fruit mass and yield of approximately 3.93 t ha-1 (25.50%) and 4.64 t ha-1 (30%), respectively. Both melon cultivars presented the best responses grown on plastic mulch, with yield increases of 79.66% and 26.16% for 'Canary' and 'Hale's Best Jumbo', respectively. Moreover, the 'Hale's Best Jumbo' cultivar presented higher soluble solids contents than the 'Canary' melon, with an increase of 11.26% (0.76 ° Brix).

Conclusion: The use of soil cover and additional fertilization (organic or foliar) in the cultivation of melon provides an increase in size, mass and productivity, while soil cover increases the soluble solids content in fruits.