Physical-chemical and anatomical properties of the
fruit of different mandarin cultivars
Ana Marija Antolković, Karla Krbavčić, Marija Mijić, Martina Skendrović Babojelić
University of Zagreb Faculty of Agriculture, Svetošimunska cesta 25, Zagreb, Croatia
Introduction
Mandarin (Citrus reticulata B.) is one of the most
prominent fruit species in the fruit sector of Croatia.
Easy pealing, pleasant flavor, low seediness, and
fragrance and as well as significant nutritional
properties are the most desirable inner quality
parameters in mandarins that are accepted by
consumers.
Aim
To determine the physical and chemical properties of
the fruit (color, weight, width, and height of the fruit,
juiciness, volume of juice, total soluble solids (TSS),
total acids (TA), and pH) as well as the anatomy of the
peel (size, position and filling of oil glands) of six
mandarin cultivars ('Chahara', 'Etna', 'Okitsu', 'Saigon',
'Unshiu' and 'Zorica') grown in the area of the Neretva
Valley.
Figure 1. Mandarin cultivars in order from left to right 'Chahara', 'Etna',
'Okitsu', 'Saigon', 'Unshiu' and 'Zorica'
Materials and methods
1 Sample preparation
The research used the six most common mandarin
cultivars collected from Neretva Valley. Samples were
collected in September and December 2020. Samples
were analyzed at the Department of Pomology,
University of Zagreb Faculty of Agriculture, Croatia.
2 Physical characteristics
Physical characteristics (weight, length, height, and
fruit index) were evaluated on 30 fruits. The surface
color was measured on the fruit skin of the 30 fruits
(equatorial area) (Figure 2.).
Figure 2. Physical characteristics: weight, length, height, and
measurement of color
3 Chemical characteristics
Samples were individually juiced. Total soluble solids
content (TSS) and pH were directly measured in the
obtained juice. Samples were individually used for
titratable acidity (TA) determination (Figure 3.).
Figure 3. Refractometer for TSS, titration for TA and pH probe
4 peel. The peel of the cultivars 'Etna', 'Okitsu',
Anatomical analysis of peel
During this research, a microscopic analysis was
carried out, which determined the anatomical
changes in the skin and oil glands on the fruits of the
investigated mandarin varieties.
5 Statistical analysis
The measured fruit quality parameters were analyzed
using variance analysis (ANOVA) in the statistical
package SAS 9.3 (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA).
V Balkan Symposium on Fruit Growing, Zagreb, Croatia, June 18-21, 2023
Results
Physical-chemical properties Anatomy of the peel
Cultivars differed significantly in the Microscopic analysis of mandarin peels yielded
investigated properties. The highest fruit photographs of flavedo and albedo where oil
shape index was determined for the 'Zorica' glands were visible.
cultivar (0.84 mm).
Fruit shape index
1,20
1,00
0,80
0,60
0,40
Figure 5. Slices of mandarine peel
0,20
a a b a a b
0,00 In all cultivars, the oil glands are clearly
visible, the cells are of regular shape and the
tissue is compact. The oil glands are smaller
in the varieties 'Chahara' and 'Etna', while in
Figure 4. Graph of fruit shape index of investigated mandarin
cultivars
the variety 'Zorica', the glands are larger than
in the other varieties. 'Okitsu' does not have
Table 1. results obtained from chemical analyzes of mandarin all glands of equal size.
fruit
Figure 6. Arrangement of oil glands around the navel
Figure 7. Details of the peel
It can be seen that all the peels are healthy,
undamaged, and of a pronounced color. The
'Etna' variety has the densest glands, while
the 'Zorica' variety has the largest glands and
is not very densely distributed.
Note: Average values ± standard deviation. Different letters added to the
average values indicate that the cultivars differ significantly in the
investigated property according to the LSD test.
The result showed that the fruit mass (120.58
g), juice volume (55.40 ml), TSS (12.92° Brix),
and pH (3.24) were recorded higher in the
mandarin 'Okitsu’.
TSS to TA ratio with relative levels of TSS (°
Brix) determines whether the fruit is edible. Figure 8. Cross section of peel and flesh
During the analysis cultivar 'Etna' had the
highest TA (1.50) however the sweetest The thickness of the peel is the criterium
cultivar is the 'Saigon' with the highest TSS according to which the observed cultivars
(10, 96° Brix) and TSS/TA ratio (12.62). differ. The 'Chahara' cultivar has a very thin
peel, while the 'Unshiu' cultivar has a thin
'Saigon' and 'Zorica' is medium thickness.
Conclusion
Based on this research, performed physico-chemical analyzes and anatomical properties on six
mandarin cultivars 'Chahara', 'Etna', 'Okitsu', 'Saigon', 'Unshiu' and 'Zorica', it can be concluded that
the 'Saigon' cultivar in this work proved to be the best and most profitable because of the uniform
size of the fruits, good juiciness, and favorable ratio of acids and sugar.