EVALUATION AND SELECTION OF COLLECTION SAMPLES OF WATERMELON FOR USE IN THE BREEDING PROCESS
Introduction. Melon growing is considered one of the profitable areas of agriculture. One of the problems in the industry is low yields. Expansion of the assortment due to the introduction into production of new high-yielding varieties and hybrids of melons and gourds will allow increasing the yield by 15-20% without additional costs. To solve this problem, it is necessary to select the source material that meets the requirements of modern breeding. The purpose of this work is to study the diversity of collection samples of watermelon, the selection of genetic sources for the creation of new varieties and hybrids. Materials and methods. The work was carried out in dry conditions at the Bykovskaya selection experimental station in 2018-2019. The research material consisted of 105 watermelon samples of various ecological and geographical origin. The studies were carried out against the background of the standards of the Zenit and Sinchevsky watermelon varieties. Results and conclusions. In the course of testing and evaluating collection samples of watermelon, 14 genetic sources of economically valuable traits were selected. The assessment was carried out according to the yield, large-fruited, the length of the growing season, the content of dry matter and the color of the pulp. The highest yield under test conditions was noted in the early group of samples from the Snezhok sample - 30.0 t / ha. In the mid-season group, the Local sample (Turkey) stood out for this indicator, its yield was 40.7 t / ha. The rest of the studied samples, except for Vasko in the early group and Yellow Flesh in the middle one, in terms of yield exceeded the standards from 2.4 to 10.1 t / ha. According to the size of the fetus, 8 samples were taken, the average weight of the fetus in the early group ranged from 7.5 to 9.0 kg, in the middle group 9.0-10.0 kg. Samples Buch Jubillee and Local (Turkey) had a high solids content of 13.0%. An important indicator for the modern consumer is the bright color of the pulp, according to this indicator, the following samples were distinguished: Rannii 6, Snezhok, Vasko, Livya. Also, to add variety to the assortment of varieties and hybrids of watermelon, samples with orange, white and yellow pulp were selected. To create new early ripening varieties, the speed of entry into fruiting is of great importance, according to this indicator, the samples KX 01 Jing Xin and White sugar lump were isolated, the growing season was 60 and 65 days, respectively. Thus, 14 sources of valuable traits have been identified for further use as a starting material when creating high-yielding varieties and hybrids of watermelon, in accordance with the developed models.