Effect of plants spacing on the watermelon fruit in Apodi Plateau, Ceará

Abstract

Watermelon is among of the most important fruits commercialized in Brazil. The principal production centers are the states of Rio Grande do Sul, Bahia, Maranhão, São Paulo, Piauí, Goiás and Pernambuco. The present work had as objective, to study the plants spacing and its effect on productivity, physical characteristic and solid solubility in the culture of the watermelon. The experiment was carried out at the Frutacor Farm, located in Apodi Plateau, Limoeiro do Norte, Ceará, Brazil. The randomized block design was composed of three treatments and four replications. The plants spacing were 2,0 x 1,2 m; 2,0 x 0,6 m and 2,0 x 0,3 m. The variables productivity, fruits weight, length of medium fruits perimeter were influenced by the tested spacing. The variable Brix of the fruits pulp was not influenced by the tested spacing.