The Effects of a Gum Arabic-Based Edible Coating on Guava Fruit Characteristics during Storage

Guava is a nutritious fruit that has perishable behavior during storage. We aimed to determine the influences of some edible coatings (namely, cactus pear stem (10%), moringa (10%), and henna leaf (3%) extracts incorporated with gum Arabic (10%)), on the guava fruits’ properties when stored under ambient and refrigeration temperatures for 7, 14, and 21 days. The results revealed that the coating with gum Arabic (10%) only, or combined with the natural plant extracts, exhibited a significant reduction in weight loss, decay, and rot ratio. Meanwhile, there were notable increases in marketability. Moreover, among all tested treatments, the application of gum Arabic (10%) + moringa extract (10%) was the superior treatment for most studied parameters, and exhibited for the highest values for maintaining firmness, total soluble solids, total sugars, and total antioxidant activity. Overall, it was suggested that coating guava with 10% gum Arabic combined with other plant extracts could maintain the postharvest storage quality of the cold-storage guava.

PRELIMINARY RESULTS REGARDING THE FRUIT QUALITY AND YIELD OF SOME BLUEBERRY GENOTYPES

Vaccinium corymbosum is one of the berry species with economic and food interest to Romanian growers and consumers. The development of blueberrty crop is a result of breeding activity, which has generated many cultivars of quality fruit and high productivity. The characters that are of economic interest in the cultivation of blueberries depend on the area of cultivation where the new cultivars are obtained. The study was conducted in summer 2020 in an experimental plot established in 2015 with seven blueberry genotypes, at Research Institute for Fruit Growing, Pitesti, Romania in the Small Fruit Laboratory, having an experience in the field of more than 40 years. The objective at this study is to compare some of fruit characteristics from genotypes 'Azur', 'Delicia', 'Duke', 'Northblue', 'Simultan', '4/6' and '6/38': plant yield, average fruit weight, fruit length, fruit diameter, the soluble solids, fruit acidity or pH, fruit firmness. During this study 'Delicia' cv. proved to have the highest production per plant (4.20 kg plant), the highest values of fruit diameter (19.70 mm), and the highest value of fruit total titratable acidity (01.25 %).

Genetic Diversity of Peach Cultivars from the Collection of the Nikita Botanical Garden Based on SSR Markers

The Nikita Botanical Garden (NBG) has a unique Prunus L. collection (peach, apricot, plum, cherry) comprising more than 3000 accessions. NBG is also a breeding center for stone fruits, including peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch). In the present study a set of 85 peach cultivars bred in NBG, Europe, and North America was analyzed using 12 SSR markers to assess their genetic diversity and relatedness. The detected polymorphism level was comparable to the previous estimates of genetic variability in peach cultivars. The average number of alleles per locus was 5.67, PIC value averaged 0.49, expected, and observed heterozygosity averaged 0.52 and 0.31, respectively. Among the detected alleles, 19 (27.94%) were rare and 12 (17.65%) were unique. All studied accessions except two could be identified with the used marker set. Cluster analysis revealed some groups according to the cultivars’ pedigrees. No clear differentiation of the studied sample according to geographic origin or fruit characteristics of peach cultivars was revealed. The results provide valuable information for identification and rational management of the material preserved in the NBG peach collection.

SOME TREES AND FRUIT CHARACTERISTICS OF IMPORTANT STANDARD AND LOCAL POMEGRANATE (Punica granatum L.) CULTIVARS GROWN IN KOCAKOY (DIYARBAKIR) DISTRICT

In this study, it was aimed to determine certain tree and Fruit characteristics of important Standard and local pomegranate cultivars grown in Kocaköy (Diyarbakir) province. In this context, 2 pomegranate species (Hicaz and Zivzik), 5 local pomegranate species (Hınara Tırş, Hınara Zer, Hınara Meğoş, Hınar Şirin and Hınara Sor) and 2 local pomegranate genotypes (Hınar-1 and Hınar2) were studied. In the study, Fruit weights ranged from 129.90 -314.59 g; Fruit heights ranged from 54.78-74.28 mm; Fruit diameters ranged from 62.92-86.43 mm; Fruit Volume strange from 129.20-293.50 ml; Fruit juice amounts ranged from 34.90-90.90 ml; Fruit densities ranged from 1.0-1.23 gr/ml; 100 seed weights ranged from 24.46-37.690 g; calix heights ranged from 9.65-21.00 mm and calix diameters ranged from 16.40-27.60 mm. In addition, Soluble solid contents (SSC) ranged from 14.60-17.29% brix; total acidity ranged from 4.02-24.51%; pH ranged from 2.55-4.15 and shape indices ranged from 0.69-0.94. Moreover, sub skin color, upper skin color, seed hardness, fruit taste, seed color, upper fruit compartment, sub fruit compartment, compartment number, compartment appearance, easiness in separating arils and Fruit pulp weights of the genotypes and cultivars were also determined.

Check-All-That-Apply Questions including the Ideal Product as a Tool for Selecting Varieties in Breeding Programs. A Case Study with Mandarins

Obtaining superior quality varieties are one of the main objectives of fruit breeding programs worldwide. In this study, we investigate employing check-all-that-apply (CATA) questions, which include the ideal product, as a method to select new varieties according to consumer organoleptic quality requirements. To this end, mandarin cultivars were used as a case study. Four new cultivars from the IVIA breeding program (‘Pri-88′, ‘Pri-89′, ‘Pri-90′ and ‘Tri-707′), and two commercial cultivars related to them (‘Clemenules’ and ‘Oronules’), were evaluated by a consumer panel using the CATA questions method, which include their ideal product. Our results reveal that this method is a useful tool for selecting varieties based on consumer descriptions of their sensory properties in relation to those of their ideal cultivar. This allows the different consumer preference patterns and differences in sample perceptions to be taken into account. A penalty analysis was performed, including the ideal product, to identify the “must-have” attributes; i.e., those that consumers included in their ideal mandarin description and, whenever present in samples, they significantly increased acceptance. For the mandarins herein evaluated, these attributes are “refreshing taste”, “very aromatic”, “sweet”, “juicy”, “very intense taste”, “sour” and “not very fibrous”. The fruit characteristics that contributed to improve the quality of the new varieties vs. the original varieties were also identified. ‘Pri-89′ and ‘Tri-707′, obtained from ‘Clemenules’, came closer to consumers’ ideal variety, because besides the aforementioned “must-have” attributes, these mandarins have small segments. ‘Pri-90′ implied improvement in relation to ‘Oronules’ and is an appropriate variety for those consumers sensitive to bitterness and who like mandarins with a certain level of sourness.

Phenotypic Diversity of Morphological Characteristics of Pitahaya (Selenicereus Megalanthus Haw.) Germplasm in Colombia

Yellow pitahaya is an exotic fruit that is rich in essential nutrients and antioxidants. In Colombia, it grows naturally in warm areas, but it is not clear which species exist because this genus presents a lot of intra and interspecific hybridization. More studies are needed in this field along with characterizations of the genotypes. This study aimed to undertake an in situ morphoagronomic evaluation of yellow pitahaya genotypes from five municipalities in Boyacá, Colombia. Measurements were taken in a completely random design. Qualitative and quantitative descriptors for cladodes, fruits and covered production systems were evaluated with a descriptive analysis, Spearman correlation variance, and multivariate and cluster analysis. The results showed that cladode characteristics such as cladode width, distance between areoles, number of spines, length of areoles, margin ribs of cladode and waxiness could be used to identify Megalanthus spp. Characteristics such as weight (270–274 g), size (100 mm), color of the fruit and pulp as well as acidity (0.18) and soluble solids (15.7) were highly variable between the genotypes. Genotypes with good morphological and fruit characteristics were identified (Gen2 and Gen9), which can provide the bases for the selection of pitahaya that satisfy the needs of farmers and consumers.

Determination of Grafting Adaptation of Some Chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.) Genotypes with Marigoule (C. Sativa × C. Crenata) Cultivar

In this study, to reproduce natural chestnut genotypes, the fruit characteristics of the Düzce region determined by local people are good in a healthy way, compatible with Marigoule (C. sativa × C. crenata) hybrid varieties resistant to branch cancer and root rot was investigated. In this study, 24 different chestnut genotypes were used. As the grafting method, the most commonly used tongue grafting, split grafting, chip budding grafting, and side grafting method were used. All procedures related to grafting were carried out in the greenhouses of the Düzce University Faculty of Forestry. In this study, local genotypes that are compatible with Marigoule chestnut were determined. As a result, the native genotype, which showed the best adaptation to Marigoule seedlings, was 87.5% of Yalnızçam, and after that, 79.2% of the Ereğli Sefer genotype. The lowest fit showed Broken genotype with 15% and Akçakoca1genotype with 17.5%. Besides, the compatibility of foreign varieties Maraval, Marigoule, and Betizac were also investigated. As a result, Betizac had the highest compatibility with 95%, while Maraval had 67.5%. The most successful in the grafting methods applied was the side graft (74.2%) followed by tongue grafting (59.9%), splitting grafting (51.4%), and chip budding grafting (29.7%).

Determination of Some Agronomic and Fruit Quality Characteristics of Some Watermelon Accessions from Turkish Watermelon Germplasm

This study has been conducted to determine the fruit quality parameters such as sugar and carotenoid content as well as plant and fruit characteristics of 11 local watermelon genotypes from watermelon genetic resources collection of Cukurova University, Department of Horticulture. First and 50% male and female flowering period, main stem length, main stem diameter, number of nodes on main stem, total yield, fruit weight, fruit length, fruit diameter, fruit rind thickness, total soluble solids (TSS), sugar and carotenoid contents were examined. Although there is no significant difference for main stem diameter and number of nodes on the main stem, significant differences were obtained for total yield, sugar and carotenoid composition of the genotypes. Carotenoid and sugar analysis were performed with a high-performance liquid chromatographic method coupled with diode-array detector (HPLC-DAD) and HPLC coupled with refractive index detector (RID), respectively. In all studied genotypes, cis-13-lycopene and β-carotene were the most abundant compounds. As expected for watermelon genotypes, the main sugar found in all studied genotypes was fructose. According to PCA analyses, genotypes were characterized by physical and chemical composition. Overall evaluation of results revealed that Kar 147 had better potential with carotenoid, sugar contents and fruit characteristics.

Can sewage sludge increase soil fertility and replace inorganic fertilizers for pineapple production?

Sewage sludge from treatment plants is an important source of N and organic matter for agriculture. The objective of this study was to analyze the effect of sewage sludge and mineral fertilization on the soil chemical properties and production of five pineapple cultivars. The study was conducted in 2 x 5 factorial scheme, consisting of two different fertilizers (sewage sludge and mineral fertilizers), combined with five pineapple cultivars (‘Pérola’, ‘Vitória’, ‘Smooth Cayenne’, ‘MD-2’, and ‘IAC Fantástico’). Sewage sludge fertilization favoured soil fertility by promoting a decrease in the pH and increase in the content of soil organic matter, phosphorus, calcium, iron, and zinc, compared to soil with mineral fertilization. In pineapple plants, sewage sludge fertilization provided statistically similar yields and physic chemical fruit characteristics compared to mineral fertilization. Among cultivars, the ‘Smooth Cayenne’ presented the highest yield (125 t ha-1), followed by cultivars ‘MD-2’ and ‘IAC Fantástico’, with intermediate yields of 98 and 90 t ha-1. Cultivars ‘Pérola’ and ‘Vitória’ presented lower yields. In this context, it was observed that sewage sludge can be used in pineapple cultivars, as an alternative source of nutrients to partial replaces inorganic fertilization.