If you plant watermelon seeds in the spring, you ______ fresh watermelon in the fall.

[xxwzs]

I have been confused with the following, which comes from a test:

If you plant watermelon seeds in the spring, you ______ fresh watermelon in the fall.
A. will eat
B. would eat
C. will be eating
D. would be eating

I would like to know which one(s) is/are suitable. Furthermore, I really appreciate it if anyone can explain why.
Thank you!

 

[emsr2d2]

When did you take this test? What was your answer?

 

[xxwzs]

When did you take this test? What was your answer?

I took it last week, which was offered by one of my senior high school students. I chose C, but I don't know how to explain. For me, all of four options seem possible.

 

[emsr2d2]

C is correct.
I can't say that A is completely wrong but it's certainly not as natural.
B and D would need the sentence to open with "If you planted ...".

What do you mean by "offered by one of my senior high school students"? How does a student offer you a test?

 

[Tarheel]

I took it last week; it was offered by one of my senior high school students. I chose C, but I don't know how to explain. For me, all of four options seem possible.

I don't find any of the options entirely natural. I might say:

If you plant watermelon seeds in the spring you will have watermelon to eat in the fall.

There is no need to emphasize that it would be fresh. (What other kind could it be?)

 

[xxwzs]

C is correct.
I can't say that A is completely wrong but it's certainly not as natural.
B and D would need the sentence to open with "If you planted ...".

What do you mean by "offered by one of my senior high school students"? How does a student offer you a test?

I am sorry for my confusing expressing; this problem was presented by my student, who found it in a grammar exercise book.
I exactly understand what you are talking about B and D:
If you planted watermelon seeds in the spring, you would eat fresh watermelon in the fall.--That's subjunctive mood in English, which indicates something is unlikely to happen. (We are just making assumption here.)
But please take a look at the below one:
If Tononi’s theory is right, it would explain why, when we miss a night’s sleep, we find it harder the next day to concentrate and learn new information—our brains may have smaller room for new experiences. --From College Admission Test.
For the above sentence, why the author writes "If Tononi’s theory is right" instead of "If Tononi's theory were right", which is also subjunctive mood.
I really hope that I have made myself understood. Thank you!!!

 

[SoothingDave]

Tononi's theory sounds plausible. We don't know for a fact that it is false, contrary to reality.

"If a theory of the earth being flat were true, then all the ships would fall off the edge."

That is contrary to known reality. That's subjunctive.

"If I were king..." or "If I were taller..." are subjunctive. I am not king. I am not taller.

 

[xxwzs]

Tononi's theory sounds plausible. We don't know for a fact that it is false, contrary to reality.

"If a theory of the earth being flat were true, then all the ships would fall off the edge."

That is contrary to known reality. That's subjunctive.

"If I were king..." or "If I were taller..." are subjunctive. I am not king. I am not taller.

Thank you so much for your information.
Let me rewrite the sentence like this: If Tononi’s theory is right, it will explain why.............--Yes, the "would" in the orginal sentence is replaced with a "will". Does the new sentence still work? If so, how do you distinguish "will" and "would" in such sentence; what's the difference between them in this sentence?
Deep thanks again.