Watermelons the size of a chicken egg have been bred for vertical farms
Amateur breeders from northern Virginia (USA) Delaney Raptis, together with her mother, developed unique lines of watermelons the size of a chicken egg for high-density growing systems.
This is reported by Hortidaily.
The breeders focused on creating plants that are ideal for vertical farms due to their short internodes and the absence of the need for support nets for the fruits. The development has been carried out since 2021 without the use of GMOs, but only through chemical mutagenesis to obtain the desired traits. This allows farmers to grow melon crops in limited space with minimal infrastructure costs.
“We wanted to create a product that would change the perception of growing watermelons in closed ground,” says Delaney Raptis.
The new lines have red and orange flesh and, despite their size, retain a high sugar content. The mother and daughter’s work on stabilizing these genes will allow them to be integrated into commercial hybrids for industrial vegetable production in the future. This fruit format is aimed at the portion-based market, allowing farmers to use greenhouse space more efficiently and obtain a harvest ready for direct consumption.
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