Durgapura Meetha
A Rajasthan (Durgapura) selection for hot, arid conditions — round to oval fruit with sweet red flesh, grown across the dry north-west and in river-bed plantings where a hardy open-pollinated type is wanted.
Quick facts
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Zaid / summer
- Maturity period
- First harvest ~90 days
- Expected yield
- 25–35 t/ha
- Suitable soil
- Sandy / light soil
- Disease resistance
- Hardy in dry heat; standard cucurbit disease watch
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Durgapura Meetha is an open-pollinated watermelon selected at Durgapura, Rajasthan, for the hot, arid tracts of the north-west. The fruit is round to oval with sweet red flesh, and the plant tolerates dry heat and poorer sandy soil better than many hybrids, which makes it a common choice for river-bed (diara) plantings and dryland fields where a cheap, hardy open-pollinated variety with saveable seed is wanted. It matures at about 90 days.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Durgapura Meetha if you farm hot, arid land or river-bed plots in Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat or Madhya Pradesh and want a cheap, hardy, open-pollinated watermelon with sweet red flesh and saveable seed. It was selected at Durgapura, Rajasthan, and takes about 90 days. The catches are a lower yield (25–35 t/ha against 45–55 for Kiran) and a rind that is less tough than the big commercial hybrids. Choose Sugar Baby for a small, early fruit sold nearby. Choose Arka Manik or Kiran when you need higher yield and long transport.
Sowing & cultivation
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Tolerant of dry heat and poorer sandy soil — suits arid and river-bed cultivation
- Sweet red flesh; hardy, dependable open-pollinated type
- Seed can be saved; cheaper than a hybrid
Things to consider
- Lower yield potential and less rind toughness than the big commercial hybrids
- No special disease resistance — manage wilt and the mildews and rotate away from cucurbits
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Rajasthan
- Haryana
- Uttar Pradesh
- Gujarat
- Madhya Pradesh
When a cheap, hardy type beats a hybrid
A hybrid like Kiran yields 45–55 t/ha, but its seed costs more and its fruit needs good soil and water. On poor sandy land or a river bed in a dry year, that extra spend is a gamble.
Durgapura Meetha yields 25–35 t/ha. It stands dry heat, costs less to sow, and gives you seed for next year. If a bad year cuts your crop, you lose less money.
Do the sum on paper: expected yield times the price you get, minus seed cost. In a good year the hybrid wins. In a poor year the cheap type may win. Choose by which year you expect more.
Can you keep your own planting material?
This is an open-pollinated variety, so seed from a healthy crop of your own can be sown again. Keep seed only from disease-free plants, dry it properly, store it cool and dry, and bring in fresh certified seed every three to four years so the variety does not drift.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Watermelon (Tarbooz) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arka Jyoti | A long-proven F1 hybrid with 6–8 kg round, red-fleshed fruit for the general market and medium-to-distant transport | First harvest ~95 days | 35–45 t/ha | Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana |
| Arka Manik | A disease-resistant open-pollinated watermelon with a firm rind, for fields with high cucurbit disease pressure and long transport | First harvest ~95–100 days | 45–60 t/ha | Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Telangana |
| Arka Muthu | A dwarf, short-vine watermelon with 2.5–3 kg single-serve fruit, for close planting, raised-bed drip, small plots and protected cultivation | First harvest ~80–90 days | 35–45 t/ha at high density | Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra |
| Durgapura Meethathis page | A hardy, cheap open-pollinated watermelon for hot, dry north-west conditions and river-bed (diara) plantings | First harvest ~90 days | 25–35 t/ha | Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh |
| Kiran | A high-yielding F1 hybrid with large 10–12 kg oval fruit and a tough, striped rind, for big fields serving distant urban markets | First harvest ~90–95 days | 45–55 t/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat |
| Pusa Bedana | A triploid seedless watermelon for the premium urban fresh market, grown with a diploid pollenizer | First harvest ~95–100 days | 25–35 t/ha | Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra |
| Sugar Baby | The most widely grown open-pollinated watermelon, small and sweet with cheap seed, for smallholders and river-bed plots selling to nearby markets | First harvest ~85–95 days | 20–30 t/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra |
Tools for this crop
The numbers you need next: how much seed to buy, whether the lot germinates, what the fertilizer bill looks like and what Watermelon (Tarbooz) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Watermelon (Tarbooz) plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Germination CalculatorTest 100 seeds from the bag before sowing and see whether the lot is fit to sow.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Watermelon (Tarbooz) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Watermelon (Tarbooz) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Watermelon (Tarbooz) in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Watermelon (Tarbooz) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Watermelon (Tarbooz) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Durgapura Meetha or Sugar Baby for river-bed planting?
Both are open-pollinated and both are common on river beds. Durgapura Meetha is selected for hot, arid conditions and tolerates dry heat and poorer sandy soil, with round to oval fruit and sweet red flesh. Sugar Baby is earlier (85–95 days) and smaller (3–5 kg), but its thin rind does not travel. If your river-bed fruit goes some distance, the sturdier Durgapura fruit is worth a trial row beside Sugar Baby.
Why is a hardy open-pollinated type a sensible choice for dryland?
Hybrid seed is expensive, and a dry year can ruin the crop whatever you sow. A cheap seed lets you take that risk at lower cost. Durgapura Meetha's seed can also be saved, so next year's seed costs you nothing. The price you pay is a lower yield (25–35 t/ha).
Can I save Durgapura Meetha seed?
Yes. It is open-pollinated so seed can be saved, and it is cheaper than a hybrid. Save from healthy, typical, sweet fruit from vines that stood the heat best, and not from a patch hit by disease.
How far can Durgapura Meetha fruit travel?
Not as far as a hybrid's. Its rind is less tough than that of the big commercial hybrids such as Kiran. Sell it in nearby and regional markets, and for long hauls choose Kiran or Arka Manik.
What disease care does Durgapura Meetha need?
It is hardy in dry heat, but it carries no special disease resistance, so keep the standard cucurbit watch: wilt and the mildews. Rotate away from cucurbits and do not sow it after another watermelon or melon on the same land.