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Abstract
The chemical composition and sensory acceptability of two low-quality (‘Bailey’ and ‘Boone County’) and two high-quality (‘Jefferson’ and Selection B612615) peach genotypes were compared. The high-quality fruit were firmer and much larger than low-quality fruit. The most striking difference between high- and low-quality peaches was that the low-quality fruit contained about seven times more total phenolics. Glucose and sorbitol were at higher levels in low-quality fruit, whereas fructose was higher in the high-quality genotypes. Sensory data substantiated the classification of the cultivars into high- and low-quality fruit. ‘Jefferson’ and B612615 peaches were rated between acceptable and good after ripening, whereas ‘Bailey’ and ‘Boone County’ were rated unacceptable. The flavor of the low-quality cultivars was described as bitter and astringent with a strong aftertaste. The high polyphenolic content, which has been associated with the astringent flavor of fresh peaches, may partially explain the poor flavor of the low-quality fruit.
There is a growing interest by consumers to purchase fresh tomatoes with improved quality traits including lycopene, total soluble solids (TSS), vitamin C, and total titratable acid (TTA) content. As a result, there are considerable efforts by tomato breeders to improve tomato for these traits. However, suitable varieties developed for one location may not perform the same in different locations. This causes a problem for plant breeders because it is too labor-intensive to develop varieties for each specific location. The objective of this study was to determine the extent of genotype × environment (G×E) interaction that influences tomato fruit quality. To achieve this objective, we grew a set of 42 diverse tomato genotypes with different fruit shapes in replicated trials in three locations: North Carolina, New York, and Ohio. Fruits were harvested at the red ripe stage and analyzed for lycopene, TSS, vitamin C, and TTA. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed that there were significant differences (P < 0.05) among tomato genotypes, locations, and their interaction. Further analysis of quality traits from individual locations revealed that there was as much as 211% change in performance of some genotypes in a certain location compared with the average performance of a genotype. Lycopene was found to be most influenced by the environment, whereas TTA was the least influenced. This was in agreement with heritability estimates observed in the study for these quality traits, because heritability estimate for lycopene was 16%, whereas that for TTA was 87%. The extent of G×E interaction found for the fruit quality traits in the tomato varieties included in this study may be useful in identifying optimal locations for future field trials by tomato breeders aiming to improve tomato fruit quality.