Improving watermelon drought tolerance by grafting: the implications for quality and yield

Abstract

Drought is a common abiotic constraint affecting world agricultural production. This study was aimed to investigate grafting as a means to improve watermelon response to drought, as well as to assess the effects of different rootstocks on watermelon agronomic and quality traits. The popular vegetable is among species with a rather large water demand. Five scions (Citrullus lanatus breeding lines, experimental hybrids and cultivar) were grafted on nine rootstocks (Citrullus lanatus var. citroides, Lagenaria siceraria, Cucurbita moschata and Cucurbita maxima) in all combinations, without previous knowledge on their compatibility. Plant material originates from the Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops, Novi Sad, Serbia, where the experiments took place. Three quarters of the total number of the scion-rootstock combinations were successfully acclimatized in a growth chamber, whereas in the open field only a half of previously acclimatized combinations completed life cycle.