Nutritional Potential of Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai) Genotypes with Different Flesh Colours

Watermelon is a popular and widely consumed fruit that is thirst-quenching and nutritious, containing abundant health-promoting phytonutrients, minerals, and antioxidants. The present study assessed the nutritional potential of twenty watermelon genotypes with different flesh colours, such as red, pink, orange, yellow, and white. This study was conducted in the experimental field of the Department of Vegetable Science at Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur during two growing seasons (December-March) of 2021-2022 and 2022-2023. A significant variation (p=0.05) was seen in nutritional quality characteristics such as lycopene, beta-carotene, citrulline, and ascorbic acid levels across various watermelon genotypes with different flesh colours. Lycopene and beta-carotene content varied from 0.037 to 66.963 µg/g and 0.037 to 7.423 µg/g, respectively, based on fresh weight. Citrulline content ranged from 843.810 ppm to 2589.750 ppm. Ascorbic acid content ranged from 21.410 to 49.827 mg/kg on a fresh weight basis. The findings indicated that watermelon genotypes with red flesh are good source of lycopene and ascorbic acid. While the highest beta-carotene content was found in orange flesh genotypes. Both orange and yellow flesh watermelon genotypes exhibited supremacy of citrulline content compared to those with red and pink flesh. White-fleshed watermelon genotypes exhibited the lowest levels of lycopene and beta-carotene content. There were significant differences in the yield per plant among various flesh-coloured genotypes of watermelon. Therefore, the findings of this study are crucial for the development of nutritionally enhanced watermelon varieties. This will also help consumers in selecting different flesh-coloured watermelons based on their dietary preferences.