Effects of feeding leaf positions on the growth and fruit quality in muskmelon plants showing leaf yellowing symptoms

This study was conducted to evaluate the influence of feeding leaf positions on the growth, net formation of fruits, and occurrence of leaf yellowing symptoms (LYS) in muskmelon plants. Plants having five or ten more leaves above the fruit-bearing node produced the greater biomass than those of plants having equal or five less leaves above the fruit-bearing node. The number of leaves above the fruit-bearing node also influenced on the occurrence of LYS. The number of plants with LYS decreased as the number of leaves borne on the nodes above the fruit-bearing node increased. The LYS infected ratio of BL-5 treatment were the greatest, while fruit weight of BL+5 treatment were the greatest among all the tested treatments. In addition, the net formation of BL-5 treatment showed the poorest. Results indicated that maintaining the higher number of leaves over the fruit-bearing node might be feasible the practical method for coping physiological damages from yellowing symptoms.