Qualitative and Nutritional Characteristics of Plum Cultivars Grown on Different Rootstocks

Abstract

Previous study hsas confirmed the influence of rootstock on the scion. Using a suitable rootstock for plum cultivar can affect many qualitative parameters of fruit. This study deals with the pomological and chemical analysis of three plums of Japanese origin (Prunus salicina) ‘Black Amber’, ‘Karkulka’, ‘Shiro’ and one European origin (Prunus domestica) ‘Stanley’ grown on five different rootstock (Ishtara, St. Julien A, Torinel, Citation and Penta) planted in Czech Republic. During the year, the phenological phases of date of blooming, flower set, date of ripening, and fruit set were determined. In this study, significant negative correlation (p < 0.05, R = −0.6831) was determined between fruit set and fruit weight. Rootstocks did not have influence on the fruit weight, but ‘Karkulka’ reached significantly higher fruit weight on St. Julien A and Citation rootstocks (32 g) than on the other three rootstocks (24 to 26 g). For all cultivars, fruit firmness and soluble solid content (SSC) were measured. The rootstocks greatly influenced the titratable acidity of plums which reached the highest value for cultivars grown on Citation rootstock (from 0.65 to 2.43%) and the lowest when grown on Ishtara rootstock (from 0.53 to 1.88%). In addition, total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), and antioxidant capacity were determined. The cultivars on Ishtara rootstock reached the highest values of TPC (from 336.26 to 562.75 mg (GAE)/100 g). The results presented in this study show influence of rootstock on quality of plums, where Ishtara rootstock was highlighted as the best.