2002 Report

22nd ANNUAL MEETING, Kissimmee, Florida

• February 3, 2002
• Benny D. Bruton, Chairman
• US Department of Agriculture
• Agricultural Research Service
• Lane, Oklahoma 74555
• [Voice] 580-889-7395 [Fax] 580-889-5783
• [E-mail]
• [Web Page] http://www.lane-ag.org/H2oMelon/watermelon.htm

The Annual Meeting of the Watermelon Research & Development Working Group (WRDWG) was on Sunday, February 3, 2002 in Kissimmee, Florida. The meeting was held at the at the Hyatt Orlando in conjunction with The Southern Association of Agricultural Scientists (S.A.A.S.) and the Southern Region American Society for Horticultural Sciences (SR: ASHS). Please let Dr. Paul Smeal (Secretary-Treasurer) know that we appreciate the support of SR:ASHS. We had an excellent program this year with an attendance of approximately 75 people. As per the request of the members, we met for a full day this year. Below is the program agenda.

Welcome: Benny Bruton, Chairman, E-mail: bbruton-usda@lane-ag.org

I. WEB PAGE:

• http://www.lane-ag.org/h2omelon/watermelon.htm
• **Non-members are encouraged to fill out the forms at the WRDWG Web Site and submit them to the chairman for processing into our database Scientist and Area of Expertise
• **All members and interested parties should submit information on: Hot Topics such as new diseases or new releases. Please update your E-mail address and especially phone numbers

II. SEED COMPANY RELEASES AND UPDATES:

• *Willhite Seed, Don Dobbs
• *SunSeeds, Glen Ruttencutter
• *Harris Moran, Brenda Lanini
• *Seminis, Fred McCuistion
• *Syngenta Seeds, Tom Williams
• *Abbott & Cobb, Pete Suddarth

III. STATEWIDE WATERMELON TRIALS FOR 2001:

• Rich Hassell, Clemson University Coastal Research Station, South Carolina, "Statewide
• Watermelon Trials for South Carolina, 2001"
• Warren Roberts, Oklahoma State University, Lane, Oklahoma. "Watermelon Cultivar Evaluations in Oklahoma"
• Don Maynard, University of Florida, Bradenton, FL, "Review of the Florida Statewide Watermelon Trials"
• Frank Dainello, Texas A&M University, College Station, "Review of the Texas Statewide Watermelon trials"
• Dan S. Egel, Southwest Purdue Ag Center, Vincennes, "Review of the Indiana Statewide Watermelon Trials"
• George Boyhan. University of Georgia, Statesboro, Georgia. "Statewide Watermelon Trials for Georgia, 2001"
• J.R. Schultheis, North Carolina State University, Horticultural Science Dept., "2001 Watermelon Cultivar Trial Results, North Carolina"

IV. BEES AND POLLINATION:

• Dr. Bob and Maggie Kent, "You Grow It - We Buzz It"
• Kent Honeybees, Inc.
• 1014 S. 10th Ave.
• Edinburg, Texas 78539
• (956) 383-6835

V. LUNCH BREAK:

• 12:00 Noon to 1:00 PM

VI. MISCELLANEOUS REPORTS:

• Robert L. Jarret, USDA/ARS, Plant Genetic Resources Unit, Griffin, GA. "Watermelon Germplasm: Past, Present, and Future"
• Diana Musto, Research Associate, National Watermelon Promotion Board, Orlando, FL. "Review of 2001 Research Projects"

VII. RESEARCH REPORTS:

• Levi, A. U.S. Vegetable Laboratory, USDA-ARS, 2875 Savannah Highway, Charleston, SC 29414-5334; "Progress in Constructing Linkage Map for Watermelon"
• Perkins-Veazie, P, Collins, J.K., Edwards, A., and Clevidance, B. U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service, Lane, OK; "Uptake of Watermelon Lycopene by Humans and Other New Lycopene News"
• Leskovar, D.I.,1* Bang , H.J.,1 Kolenda, K.,1 Franco, J.A.,2 and Perkins-Veazie, P.3 1Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, Dept. Horticultural Sciences, Texas A&M University, Uvalde, TX 78801; 2 Departamento de Producci?n Agraria, Universidad Polit?cnica de Cartagena, Cartagena, Spain; 3 USDA, ARS, SCARL, Lane, OK 74555; "Limited Irrigation Influences Yield, Fruit Quality and Lycopene Content of Watermelon"
• Thies, J.A.* and Levi, A. U.S. Vegetable Laboratory, USDA-ARS, 2875 Savannah Highway, Charleston, SC 29414-5334; "Response of Selected Citrullus Plant Introductions to the Peanut Root-knot Nematode (Meloidogyne Arenaria Race 1)"
• Gerald Holmes, G.1 and Schultheis, J.R.2 North Carolina State University, (1) Dept. Plant Pathology, (2) Horticultural Science Dept. "Relative Susceptibility of Watermelon Cultigens to Ozone in North Carolina, 2000-2001"
• Guner, N., Wehner, T.C., and Pesic-Van Esbroeck, Z. North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC "Screening for PRSV-W Resistance in Watermelon"
• Gusmini, G. and Wehner, T.C. North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC "Screening for GSB Resistance in Watermelon"
• Neppl, G.P. and Wehner T.C. North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC "Effect of Plot Size on Yield Variation in Watermelon"
• Egel, D.S., Ramasubramaniam, H., and Barber, S. SW Purdue Ag Program, Vincennes, IN 47591; "Mature Watermelon Vine Decline Update"
• Roberts, W. Oklahoma State University, Lane Oklahoma "Cultivar Evaluations : Consistency among Investigators"
• Bruton, B.D. USDA-ARS, Lane, Oklahoma. "Squash Bug: Vector of Serratia marcescens, Causal Agent of Cucurbit Yellow Vine Disease"

IV. SEED SOURCE FOR FUSARIUM WILT DIFFERENTIALS

V. REFRESHMENTS:

• Please let Diana Musto know that we appreciate the National Watermelon Promotion Board for providing the refreshments for the 2002 Annual Meeting. Thanks Diana and William Watson!

PAST REFRESHMENT SPONSORSHIPS:

• National Watermelon Promotion Board: Kissimmee, Florida - 2002
• Sugar Creek Seed Inc.: Ft. Worth, Texas - 2001
• Willhite Seeds: Lexington, Kentucky - 2000
• Novartis Seeds Inc.: Memphis, Tennessee - 1999
• Sunseeds: Little Rock, Arkansas - 1998
• Barham Seeds: Birmingham, Alabama - 1997
• American SunMelon: Greensboro, North Carolina - 1996
• Willhite Seeds: New Orleans, Louisiana - 1995
• Asgrow Seed Company: Nashville, Tennessee - 1994
• American SunMelon:Tulsa, Oklahoma - 1993

VI. OTHER BUSINESS

VII. ADJOURN