Evaluation of newly developed guava cultivars & selections under Lucknow conditions

Abstract

The assessment of grafted plants of 10 guava selections & cultivars, viz., Pant Prabhat, Lalit, Shweta, CISH-G-4, CISH-G-31, CISH-G-1, Arka Mridula, Hybrid-21, Arka Amulya, Hisar Surkha and Hisar Safeda was carried at the Central Institute of Subtropical Horticulture, Rehmankhera, Lucknow during 2011-12. Plant height was maximum in hybrid-21 (6.33 m) and minimum in Arka Amulya (4.83 m). Canopy spread of the tree in E-W and N-S directions ranged from 4.77-7.53 and 4.44-7.15 m. Fruit weight ranged from 157.20 to 279.84 g among different cultivars/ selections evaluated. Maximum weight was found in cv. Pant Prabhat (279.84 g), whereas minimum fruit weight (157.20 g) was observed in Hisar Surkha. Length of seed core varied from 3.69-5.54 cm. Hisar Safeda and Pant Prabhat gave the highest pulp content (97.39%) and maximum seeds pulp ratio was recorded in Hisar Safeda. The seed hardness was observed to be maximum in Lalit (16.53 kg/cm2), while Hisar Surkha (8.42 kg/cm2) had minimum seed hardness. Highest yield per tree was obtained in Shweta (90.62 kg/ tree), whereas lowest yield was recorded in Hybrid-21 (30.64 kg/tree). Besides, there were significant variation with regards to TSS and vitamin C. TSS content varied from 11.38 to 14.84°Brix being maximum in Hisar Surkha. Ascorbic acid content varied from 179.45 to 247.09 mg/100 g. Apart from this, significant variations were also found with respect to sugars, acidity, lycopene and anthocyanin contents in different cultivars. Overall, Hisar Surkha recorded maximum quality attributes and Lalit, Shweta and Pant Prabhat were assessed as a high yielder with moderate fruit quality.