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Seed of 15 watermelon cultivars were evaluated for germinating ability at sub-optimum temperatures. Seeds of each cultivar were exposed to 12.8, 15.6, 18.3, 21.1, and 30.0°C for 8 days in a germinator in accordance to standard seed testing rules. Radical emergence was evaluated on day 5 and day 8. None of the cultivars germinated at 12.8C after 8 days exposure. At 15.6°C, 'Red-N-Sweet' and `Blackstone' had germinations of 54 and 40 percent respectively on day 5, and both increased to over 80 percent on day 8. At 18.3°C `Red-N-Sweet' and `Blackstone' exhibited at least 90 percent germination after 5 days while the other 14 cultivars ranged from 2.5 to 86 percent. At 21.1°C all cultivars except `Black Diamond' and `Allsweet' had germinations of 80 percent or higher on day 5. Germination increased to 90 percent or above by day 8 except for `Black Diamond' at 83 percent. There were no significant differences among cultivars at the 30°C optimum germinating temperature with cultivars having 89.5 percent or higher germination.