Research

University of Florida – Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Southwest Florida Research and Education Center (SWFREC)   Accurate plant counting and monitoring are critical tasks in modern nurseries and precision agriculture. In large-scale commercial operations, thousands of seedlings are produced each season, and the process of identifying, counting, and classifying healthy versus empty…

The University of Tulsa Final Report Multi-year Project Proposal to the National Watermelon Association Final Report Suppression of Fusarium Wilt of Watermelon by Mycoviruses 2025 This research was led by Project Principal Investigator Dr. Akhtar Ali Professor of Plant Virology Department of Biological Science Introduction: Research goals and objectives in 2024-2025. Over the past research…

Clemson University 2025  Final Progress Report Filling the gaps for informed and economical adoption of Carolina Strongback grafted nursery to combat fusarium wilt. This groundbreaking research is led by Bhupinder S. Jatana. Introduction: A field research experiment was conducted at Edisto Research and Education Center (EREC), Clemson University. The watermelon nursery in experiment was transplanted…

Clemson University Annual Progress Report Filling the gaps for informed and economical adoption of Carolina Strongback grafted nursery to combat fusarium wilt. This groundbreaking research is led by Bhupinder S. Jatana. Introduction: Two field research experiments were conducted at Edisto Research and Education Center (EREC), Clemson University. The watermelon nursery in the first experiment was…

NWA Funded Research from 2023 Grant Program: Increasing pollinator visitation and controlling whiteflies

On-farm research trials at conducted in Barnwell County, SC with a history of severe Fusarium Wilt in watermelon.  A number of treatments with and without the application of arbuscular mycorrhizae fungi, and comparing with Carolina Strongback grafted watermelon. This research was funded by NWA as part of the 2023 Grant Program. Read more here.

Fusarium wilt of watermelon, caused by the fungus *Fusarium oxysporum* f. sp. *niveum* (FON), leads to substantial yield loss in watermelon crops. This disease is prevalent worldwide, including Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America. It can cause pre- or post-emergence damping-off of seedlings and rapid death of young plants under suitable conditions….

A trial in Berrien County, Georgia, tested fungicides for Fusarium wilt in watermelons transplanted on 11 April. Despite cool, wet conditions, Fusarium wilt developed slowly, with Proline and Actigard treatments reducing disease incidence by late May. However, no differences in yield or stand loss were observed between treated and untreated plots, and no phytotoxicity was…

A trial at the University of Georgia tested Fusarium wilt (FW) management in watermelons using fungicides. Watermelons were transplanted into beds, with some plots inoculated with Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. niveum race 1 (FON1) and others left non-inoculated. Proline fungicide treatments reduced FW incidence and stand loss in inoculated plots, but there was no effect on…