Productive potential of watermelon under different plant spacings in the semi-arid region of Brazil

This study aimed to evaluate the growth and development of watermelon plants under different plant spacings in the Semi-arid region of Brazil. A randomized block experimental design was used with four treatments and eight replications. Data were submitted to analysis of variance and the Tukey test. The treatments were composed by the following spacings: T1: 3.0 x 0.8 m; T2: 3.0 x 0.6 m; T3: 2.0 x 0.8 m and T4: 2.0 x 0.6 m (spacings between rows and between plants, respectively). The plant length, number of leaves, stem diameter, leaf area, number of flowers, number of fruits per plant, average fruit weight, total fruit production, number of commercial fruits, average weight of commercial fruits, total weight of commercial fruits and percentage of commercial fruits were evaluated in this study. There was a significant difference in the growth traits: stem diameter and leaf area at 30 days after sowing (DAS), and plant length, stem diameter and number of leaves at 60 DAS, with no significant statistical difference in the remaining days and nor for the number of flowers. The watermelon plants showed adequate vegetative and productive development at the 2.0 x 0.8 m plant spacing in the edaphoclimatic conditions of the semi-arid region under study. This spacing is well suited to small producers in the semi-arid region, which are dependent on agriculture with small areas and can obtain good productivity with no need to use larger areas due to spacing.