Stability of Fruit Quality Traits of Different Strawberry Varieties under Variable Environmental Conditions

Lucía Cervantes,Juan Jesús Medina,David Lozano,Carmen Soria,Elsa Martínez-Ferri,María Teresa Ariza,Luis Miranda

doi:10.3390/agronomy10091242

Abstract

Strawberry fruit quality traits can be affected by genotype–environment interactions, determining the final consumer acceptance of fruits. Trait stability under varying environments is necessary to ensure the fruit quality of strawberries selected by breeding programs. Hence, inter- and intra-annual variation of organoleptic and functional fruit quality parameters of five strawberry varieties throughout four consecutive cropping seasons was analyzed to assess their relative stability. In most varieties, organoleptic parameters showed higher inter-annual stability but greater variability throughout the season, while the reverse was true for the functional quality parameters. Relative humidity and mean and minimum temperatures partially accounted for fruit quality variation but other factors along with the genotype may also have an influence. Among the varieties, ‘Splendor’ displayed greater year-on-year stability in organoleptic parameters, and ‘Sabrina’ and Candonga® showed higher inter- and intra-annual stability on functional fruit quality, respectively. Environmental variation did not affect fruit quality parameters similarly in all strawberry varieties. In ‘Sabrina’ and Candonga® antioxidant capacity (TEAC) was greater and stable throughout the cropping season, underlining TEAC as a tool for varietal selection, and suggesting these two varieties as parents for breeding programs that seek healthy features and high-quality fruits that meet consumer demands.

Highlights

Fruits and vegetables are an important part of the daily diet since they provide essential nutrients and fibers [1]
This study reports an integrative analysis of the intra- and inter- annual stability of organoleptic and functional fruit quality traits on different strawberry genotypes and their specific relationship with the environmental variation
The results of the present study showed that the variation of fruit quality parameters throughout the season did not necessarily match their year-on-year stability on each strawberry variety (Figure 1) and that environmental influence on organoleptic and functional fruit quality traits is genotype-dependent

Summary

Introduction

Fruits and vegetables are an important part of the daily diet since they provide essential nutrients and fibers [1] This is the case of strawberry fruits, highly appreciated by consumers due to their texture, aroma and flavor (i.e., organoleptic fruit quality). In specific situations, climatic conditions can be a source of stress for the crop depending on the ability of the varieties to cope with it. In this sense, it has been described that antioxidant compounds of polyphenolic nature play an important role in the general mechanisms of response to different stressors and, changes in environmental variables could be expected to influence the composition and synthesis of these compounds in different parts of the plant, including fruits [10]

Methods

Results

Conclusion