Seminis Vegetable Seeds, Inc.

Fred McCuistion

Benito Juarez

Greg Tolla

Robert Barham

Warren Barham

Terry Walker

Jeffrey M Mills

Joseph J King

Eleni Bachlava

Gregory E Tolla

Adam M Wentzell

A watermelon plant that produces fruit having (i) ultra-firm flesh and/or liquid-retaining flesh and (ii) soluble solids of at least about 6 brix.

Watermelon with improved processing qualities

A watermelon plant that produces fruit having (i) ultra-firm flesh and/or liquid-retaining flesh and (ii) soluble solids of at least about 6 brix. The invention further provides for unique watermelon plants with an ultra-firm flesh phenotype and their progeny. Such plants may comprise an introgressed QTL associated with an ultra-firm flesh phenotype. In certain aspects, compositions, including distinct polymorphic molecular markers, and methods for producing, breeding, identifying, selecting, and the like of plants or germplasm with an ultra-firm flesh phenotype are provided.

Methods and compositions for watermelon with improved processing qualities and firmness

The invention provides methods for producing seeds in watermelon. In one embodiment methods are provided comprising grafting of a seed parent onto a stress tolerant rootstock, pollinating the seed parent with pollen from a pollen donor, and cultivating the seed parent until seed is formed. In specific embodiments, triploid seeds produced by a method of the invention are rendered conspicuously distinguishable from tetraploid seeds, and thus readily selected manually or by an automated machine. Methods for increasing seed yield and/or quality are also provided.

Methods for watermelon plant and seed production

Methods for plant seed production

The present invention is a novel method which results in the production of small seedless watermelon fruit having an average fruit weight of less than 12.0 pounds. The novel method involves using small tetraploid parental lines to produce small triploid hybrid seed.

Seedless watermelon having small fruit

Growing community of inventors

Tifton, GA, United States of America

Fred McCuistion