Hostname: page-component-89b8bd64d-46n74 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-05-07T06:52:08.637Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Interference of morningglories (Ipomoea spp.) with ‘Fascination’ triploid watermelon

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 June 2022

Jeanine Arana*
Affiliation:
Graduate Research Assistant, Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
Stephen L. Meyers
Affiliation:
Assistant Professor, Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
Wenjing Guan
Affiliation:
Clinical Engagement Associate Professor, Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, Vincennes, IN, USA
William G. Johnson
Affiliation:
Professor, Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
*
Author for correspondence: Jeanine Arana, Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, 625 Agriculture Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907. (Email: jcordone@purdue.edu)
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Morningglories (Ipomoea spp.) are among the most troublesome weeds in cucurbits in the United States; however, little is known about Ipomoea spp. interference with horticultural crops. Two additive design field studies were conducted in 2020 at two locations in Indiana to investigate the interference of ivyleaf morningglory (Ipomoea hederacea Jacq.), entireleaf morningglory (Ipomoea hederacea Jacq. var. integriuscula A. Gray.), and pitted morningglory (Ipomoea lacunosa L.) with triploid watermelon [Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai]. Immediately after watermelon was transplanted, Ipomoea spp. seedlings were transplanted into the watermelon planting holes at densities of 0 (weed-free control), 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 plants 27 m−2. Fruit was harvested once a week for 4 wk, and each fruit was classified as marketable (≥4 kg) or non-marketable (<4 kg). At 1 wk after the final harvest, aboveground biomass samples were collected from 1 m2 per plot and oven-dried to obtain watermelon and Ipomoea spp. dry weight. Seed capsules and the number of seeds in 15 capsules were counted from the biomass sample to estimate seed production. Ipomoea spp. densities increasing from 3 to 24 plants 27 m−2 increased marketable watermelon yield loss from 58% to 99%, reduced marketable watermelon fruit number 49% to 98%, reduced individual watermelon fruit weight 17% to 45%, and reduced watermelon aboveground biomass 83% to 94%. Ipomoea spp. seed production ranged from 549 to 7,746 seeds m−2, greatly increasing the weed seedbank. Ipomoea spp. hindered harvest due to their vines wrapping around watermelon fruits. The most likely reason for watermelon yield loss was interference with light and consequently less dry matter being partitioned into fruit development due to less photosynthesis. Yield loss was attributed to fewer fruits and the weight of each fruit.

Information

Type
Research Article
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution and reproduction, provided the original article is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Weed Science Society of America
Figure 0

Figure 1. Additive design plot layout. Constant density of 12 ‘Fascination’ triploid watermelon and six ‘Wingman’ pollenizer plants, and varied densities of 0, 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 Ipomoea spp. 27 m−2.

Figure 1

Figure 2. Relationship between Ipomoea spp. density and Ipomoea spp. canopy cover percent at 6 and 8 wk after transplanting (WATr) described with a rectangular hyperbola. The model is $y = \left( {I{\rm{*}}x} \right) \div \left[ {1 + \left( {I*x/A} \right)} \right]$, where I = 15.97 and A = 115.33 at 6 WATr, and I = 31.29 and A = 115.86 at 8 WATr. Data points represent the observed mean data with their SE bars, and the solid and dashed lines represent the predicted values based on the model for each WATr. Data were pooled across two locations in 2020: the Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center (SWPAC) and Meigs Horticulture Farm (MEIGS), Indiana, USA.

Figure 2

Figure 3. Plot canopy cover at densities of 0, 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 Ipomoea spp. 27 m−2 at 8 wk after transplanting (WATr) at the Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center (SWPAC), Indiana, USA, in 2020.

Figure 3

Figure 4. Ipomoea spp. vines wrapped around a watermelon fruit at harvest at Meigs Horticulture Research Farm (MEIGS), Indiana, USA, in 2020.

Figure 4

Figure 5. Relationship between Ipomoea spp. density and watermelon marketable yield loss described with a rectangular hyperbola. The model is $y = \left( {I*x} \right) \div \left[ {1 + \left( {I*x/A} \right)} \right]$, where I = 40.80 and A = 109.89. Data points represent the observed mean data with their SE bars, and the solid line represents the predicted values based on the model. Fruit was classified as marketable if ≥4 kg. Data were pooled across two locations in 2020: the Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center (SWPAC) and Meigs Horticulture Farm (MEIGS), Indiana, USA.

Figure 5

Figure 6. Relationship between Ipomoea spp. density and watermelon marketable fruit number reduction described with a rectangular hyperbola. The model is $y = \left( {I*x} \right) \div \left[ {1 + \left( {I*x/A} \right)} \right]$, where I = 29.16 and A = 113.29. Data points represent the observed mean data with their SE bars, and the solid line represents the predicted values based on the model. Fruit was classified as marketable if ≥4 kg. Data were pooled across two locations in 2020: the Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center (SWPAC) and Meigs Horticulture Farm (MEIGS), Indiana, USA.

Figure 6

Figure 7. Relationship between Ipomoea spp. density and watermelon average individual fruit weight reduction (marketable and non-marketable fruits) described with a rectangular hyperbola. The model is $y = \left( {I*x} \right) \div \left[ {1 + \left( {I*x/A} \right)} \right]$, where I = 8.05 and A = 58.97. Data points represent the observed mean data with their SE bars, and the solid line represents the predicted values based on the model. Fruit was classified as marketable if ≥4 kg and non-marketable if <4 kg. Data were pooled across two locations in 2020: the Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center (SWPAC) and Meigs Horticulture Farm (MEIGS), Indiana, USA.

Figure 7

Figure 8. Relationship between Ipomoea spp. density and watermelon biomass reduction in 1 m2 described with a rectangular hyperbola. The model is $y = \left( {I*x} \right) \div \left[ {1 + \left( {I*x/A} \right)} \right]$, where I = 202.96 and A = 95.94. Data points represent the observed mean data with their SE bars, and the solid line represents the predicted values based on the model. Watermelon biomass data were collected from a 1-m2 plot and oven-dried at 60 C to obtain dry weight. Data were pooled across two locations in 2020: the Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center (SWPAC) and Meigs Horticulture Farm (MEIGS), Indiana, USA.

Figure 8

Table 1. Ipomoea spp. seed production (±SE) at the Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center (SWPAC) and Meigs Horticulture Farm (MEIGS), Indiana, USA, in 2020.