Effect of Seed Pretreatment on Germination Parameters, Growth, and Fruit Yield of Muskmelon (Cucumis melo var reticulates L.)

Seed pretreated with plant growth regulators can improve germination parameters, growth, and yield of crops. Thus, in two greenhouse and field experiments, effects of seed treatment with 0.1 mM salicylic acid (SA), 1µM methyl jasmonate (MJ), 1.5% humic acid (HA), and water (as Control) on germination parameters, seedling growth, and also growth and fruit yield were studied. In the first experiment which was conducted on two cultivars (Semsuri and Shahpasandi), all the treatments improved most of parameters the recorded, and the response of two cultivars was rather similar for most parameters. In the second experiment which was conducted on one cultivar (Shahpasandi) in the field, all the treatments improved most of parameters the recorded. Compared with the control, SA, MJ and HA increased total plant fresh weight (19, 41 and 19%), fruit number (30, 35 and 20%) and fruit yield (31, 45 and 31), respectively. Significant correlations were found between fruit yield and relative water content (r = -0.95*), ion leakage (r = -0.93*), final plant shoot fresh weight (r = 0.99**) and fruit number (r = 0.93*), indicating that treatments could increase fruit yield by improving ion leakage and relative water content.