Harvest Season and Genotype Affect Head Quality and Shelf-Life of Ready-to-Use Broccoli
Pre-harvest climatic conditions and genotype may have important effects on head quality and post-harvest performance of fresh-cut broccoli. The present work evaluates the effect of the growing cycle (summer–autumn (SA), winter (W), winter–spring (WS), and spring (S)) and genotype on qualitative (dry...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-04-01
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| Series: | Agronomy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/10/4/527 |
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| author | Giulia Conversa Corrado Lazzizera Anna Bonasia Antonio Elia |
| author_facet | Giulia Conversa Corrado Lazzizera Anna Bonasia Antonio Elia |
| author_sort | Giulia Conversa |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Pre-harvest climatic conditions and genotype may have important effects on head quality and post-harvest performance of fresh-cut broccoli. The present work evaluates the effect of the growing cycle (summer–autumn (SA), winter (W), winter–spring (WS), and spring (S)) and genotype on qualitative (dry matter, concentration of chlorophylls, carotenoids, and color) and antioxidative (ascorbic acid, dehydroascorbic acid, total phenol concentrations, and antioxidant capacity) traits of broccoli heads and minimally processed florets. The WS raw product showed the best color indices (L* = 38.6, C* = 9.3 and h° = 123.8) as well as the highest chlorophyll (0.23 µg mg<sup>−1</sup> fresh weight) but the lowest total phenol concentration (5.5 µg mg<sup>−1</sup> dry weight - DW), whereas the ascorbic acid level (2.3 µg mg<sup>−1</sup> DW) was comparable to or lower than that the other growing cycles. The WS florets confirmed their best visual quality, even showing an improved total phenol level after 14 days of cold storage. The climatic conditions experienced by broccoli plants grown in SA, W, and S periods were stressful as they resulted in a slight reduction in the visual quality of the heads, though only the SA florets showed a distinctive decay during storage. The lower post-harvest performance of SA grown broccoli was confirmed in all the tested cultivars, despite ‘Naxos’ seeming more tolerant. On the contrary, the greatest content of ascorbic acid (3.2 µg mg<sup>−1</sup> DW) in the W heads and of phenols (11.1 µg mg<sup>−1</sup> DW) in S heads was maintained during storage, thus preserving floret color. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T20:37:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e745de251727437e8b8077a291173d91 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4395 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T20:37:17Z |
| publishDate | 2020-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agronomy |
| spelling | doaj.art-e745de251727437e8b8077a291173d912023-11-19T20:56:44ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952020-04-0110452710.3390/agronomy10040527Harvest Season and Genotype Affect Head Quality and Shelf-Life of Ready-to-Use BroccoliGiulia Conversa0Corrado Lazzizera1Anna Bonasia2Antonio Elia3Department of the Science of Agriculture, Food and Environment (SAFE), University of Foggia, 71100 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of the Science of Agriculture, Food and Environment (SAFE), University of Foggia, 71100 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of the Science of Agriculture, Food and Environment (SAFE), University of Foggia, 71100 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of the Science of Agriculture, Food and Environment (SAFE), University of Foggia, 71100 Foggia, ItalyPre-harvest climatic conditions and genotype may have important effects on head quality and post-harvest performance of fresh-cut broccoli. The present work evaluates the effect of the growing cycle (summer–autumn (SA), winter (W), winter–spring (WS), and spring (S)) and genotype on qualitative (dry matter, concentration of chlorophylls, carotenoids, and color) and antioxidative (ascorbic acid, dehydroascorbic acid, total phenol concentrations, and antioxidant capacity) traits of broccoli heads and minimally processed florets. The WS raw product showed the best color indices (L* = 38.6, C* = 9.3 and h° = 123.8) as well as the highest chlorophyll (0.23 µg mg<sup>−1</sup> fresh weight) but the lowest total phenol concentration (5.5 µg mg<sup>−1</sup> dry weight - DW), whereas the ascorbic acid level (2.3 µg mg<sup>−1</sup> DW) was comparable to or lower than that the other growing cycles. The WS florets confirmed their best visual quality, even showing an improved total phenol level after 14 days of cold storage. The climatic conditions experienced by broccoli plants grown in SA, W, and S periods were stressful as they resulted in a slight reduction in the visual quality of the heads, though only the SA florets showed a distinctive decay during storage. The lower post-harvest performance of SA grown broccoli was confirmed in all the tested cultivars, despite ‘Naxos’ seeming more tolerant. On the contrary, the greatest content of ascorbic acid (3.2 µg mg<sup>−1</sup> DW) in the W heads and of phenols (11.1 µg mg<sup>−1</sup> DW) in S heads was maintained during storage, thus preserving floret color.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/10/4/527weight lossyellowingascorbic acidtotal phenolschlorophyllscarotenoids |
| spellingShingle | Giulia Conversa Corrado Lazzizera Anna Bonasia Antonio Elia Harvest Season and Genotype Affect Head Quality and Shelf-Life of Ready-to-Use Broccoli Agronomy weight loss yellowing ascorbic acid total phenols chlorophylls carotenoids |
| title | Harvest Season and Genotype Affect Head Quality and Shelf-Life of Ready-to-Use Broccoli |
| title_full | Harvest Season and Genotype Affect Head Quality and Shelf-Life of Ready-to-Use Broccoli |
| title_fullStr | Harvest Season and Genotype Affect Head Quality and Shelf-Life of Ready-to-Use Broccoli |
| title_full_unstemmed | Harvest Season and Genotype Affect Head Quality and Shelf-Life of Ready-to-Use Broccoli |
| title_short | Harvest Season and Genotype Affect Head Quality and Shelf-Life of Ready-to-Use Broccoli |
| title_sort | harvest season and genotype affect head quality and shelf life of ready to use broccoli |
| topic | weight loss yellowing ascorbic acid total phenols chlorophylls carotenoids |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/10/4/527 |
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