Comparison of anti-oxidant activities and fruit quality attributes in four sweet bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) cultivars grown in two soilless media

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis work was carried out to study the effects of two soilless media consisting of 80:20 [volume/volume (v/v)] mixtures of mosspeat and perlite, or cocopeat and perlite, on fruit quality and anti-oxidant activities in four cultivars of bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L.): ‘Traviata’ (green), ‘Inspratian’ (red), ‘Aracia’ (orange), and ‘Taranto’ (yellow). The results showed that the composition of the medium had a significant effect on the anti-oxidant composition and activities of the bell pepper fruit. Plants grown on 80:20 (v/v) mosspeat and perlite had significantly higher pericarp firmness, titratable acidity, total phenolic compound concentrations, 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging ability, and the hydroxy free-radical (•OH) scavenging ability. Fruit on plants grown on 80:20 (v/v) cocopeat and perlite had significantly higher vitamin C concentrations. Among the four cultivars tested, ‘Inspratian’ (red) was superior in more factors including pericarp thickness, dry matter content, titratable acidity, total soluble solids content, total phenolic concentration, DPPH scavenging ability, and vitamin C concentration. There was a significant interaction between cultivar and soilless medium composition, indicating that the response of bell pepper cultivars varied in the different media. The results of the present study highlight the importance of comparing soilless media in terms of their effect on fruit crop quality and anti-oxidant activity.