• Logo_picleg

Growth slits

 

Every grower must have been or will one day be confronted with the appearance of growth cracks on melon fruits. This results in "bursts" located in the stylar zone of the fruits (figure 1). Note that these slits allow various molds to easily colonize  the flesh and induce rot, such as a Fusarium sp. (figure 2).

The exact cause of this certainly physiological condition is not known. It seems that the food of plants, and in particular their water supply, plays a role in promoting its expression. Indeed, it is observed in cultural contexts in which the plants have received too irregular irrigations, in "spurts": periods of humidity following periods of drought. It is also rife as a result of significant and unexpected water inflows: heavy rains ...
Note that all varieties do not behave in the same way when confronted with these situations: differences in sensitivity can occur.

To more or less solve this problem, we cannot advise you enough to abandon the cultivation of too sensitive varieties and to try to better control the irri
gation.
Last change : 04/30/21
fente_melon_DB_386
Figure 1
fusarium_melon_DB_373
Figure 2