Methods for plant seed production
AssigneeSeminis Vegetable Seeds, Inc.
InventorsBenito Juarez, Terry Walker, Fred McCuistion, Greg Tolla
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Abstract
The invention provides methods for producing seeds in watermelon. In one embodiment methods are provided comprising grafting of a seed parent onto a stress tolerant rootstock, pollinating the seed parent with pollen from a pollen donor, and cultivating the seed parent until seed is formed. In specific embodiments, triploid seeds produced by a method of the invention are rendered conspicuously distinguishable from tetraploid seeds, and thus readily selected manually or by an automated machine. Methods for increasing seed yield and/or quality are also provided.
Claims21
A method of producing triploid watermelon seed comprising:
- (a) obtaining a tetraploid watermelon plant, wherein the plant has been grafted onto a rootstock that exhibits stress tolerance when under stress conditions;
- (b) allowing the tetraploid watermelon plant to be pollinated by a diploid watermelon plant;
- and
- (c) allowing triploid seed to form on the tetraploid watermelon plant.
A population of watermelon plants planted in pollinating proximity in a field comprising:
- (a) tetraploid watermelon seed parent plants, wherein the plants have been grafted onto a rootstock that exhibits stress tolerance when under stress conditions;
- and
- (b) diploid watermelon pollen donor plants.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.