Minilee and Mickylee are mini-watermelons with potential for the Australian market

Abstract

The watermelon industry aims to produce fruit 2 10 kg, but supermarkets sell cut portions, so there may be a market for smaller fruit, between 2 and 4 kg. We tested several small-fruited watermelon cultivars to see if there was potential to establish a mini-watermelon industry. Minilee and Mickylee (ex Florida) were the best 2 cultivars; the fruit of 3 Taiwanese cultivars split under slight pressure, and the fruit of the cultivars Sugar Baby and Baby Fun were too heavy. Minilee and Mickylee were grown at plant densities between 5550 and 22 200 plants/ha. At 7400, 11 100 and 14 800 plants/ha, 70-72% of the Minilee fruit weighed between 2 and 4 kg. In contrast, at 22 200 plants/ha, 79% of the Mickylee fruit weighed between 2 and 4 kg, but at the other plant densities only 38-59% of the fruit were in this weight range. We conclude that Minilee and Mickylee are suitable cultivars for a mini-watermelon industry around Bundaberg and probably other parts of Australia where Florida cultivars are presently grown. Because the yield of fruit in the 2-4 kg range for Minilee was less sensitive to plant density than the Mickylee yield in this range, we believe that Minilee would be the better commercial proposition.