Abstract
The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of the application of potassium fertilizers on the yield and quality of the watermelon crop. The experiment was developed in the city of Cañete, district of San Vicente de Cañete, in the lRD Costa: Fundo Don German. The treatments were distributed under a randomized complete block design (DBCA), with four repetitions. The experimental unit was made up of plots with three beds, having a total of 30 plants per plot. The dimensions of each bed were four meters wide by five meters long, each experimental unit having an area of 75 m2, the distance between plants was one meter, with a density of 4000 plants/ha. The transplant was carried out on November 22, 2012, the fertilization doses applied were 0 – 0 – 0; 220 – 184 – 0, 220 – 184 – 160, 220 – 184 – 210, 220 – 184 – 260 of N – P2O5 -K2O, respectively, which was supplied at two times: 15 days after transplant and 38 days after transplant. Fertilizations were applied to the soil, in addition, alternating applications of insecticides and fungicides were made to control pests and diseases. The variables studied were growth (length and diameter of the fruit), yield (weight of fruits), and quality (Percentage of soluble solids, thickness of pulp and peel, percentage of dry matter). The SAS (Statistical Analysis System) program was used for the analysis of variance and Tukey’s test at five percent probability. The crop cycle was 109 days. Fertilization affected the percentage of soluble solids in the fruits. The highest yield was obtained with the treatment of 160 kg of K2O/ha, with 36.12 t/ha.
