UTILITY AND BIOLOGICAL VALUE OF HOT PEPPER FRUITS FROM A SINGLE HARVEST

Due to the unique taste features and pro-health values of fruits, hot pepper is cultivated in Poland on the commercial scale, most frequently with the use of single harvest which results in fruits at various maturity stage: green fruits, fruits turning colour and physiologically mature fruits (red). This paper, based on the results of 3-year experiments, evaluates utility and biological value of fruits of four Polish cvs.: ‘Bronowicka Ostra’, ‘Orkan’, ‘Cyklon’ and ‘Rokita’. Agricultural study was conducted for three years, during the period 2009–2011. Fruits of various maturity stage consisted of the marketable yield of the and hot pepper from a single harvest. The evaluated cultivars differed in utility and biological value of fruits, quantity and fruit yield structure. The greatest yield was obtained from ‘Orkan’ and ‘Rokita’ cvs. (2.17 kg·m-2 ), yet the greatest yield of physiologically mature fruits (1.16 kg·m-2) from ‘Bronowicka Ostra’ cv. whose share in marketable yield was 65.0%. Biological value of fruits depended on maturity stage and cultivar genotype. Physiologically mature fruits contained most dry mass (13.18%), soluble solids (4.4%), L-ascorbic acid (199.9 mg·100 g-1 f.m.), total sugars (2.92%). Yet more capsaicinoids were proved in green fruits and fruits turning colour. Least dry mass (%) and total sugars (%) were noted in ‘Orkan’ cv., whereas least L-ascorbic acid in ‘Bronowicka Ostra’ cv., in which fruits at every stage of maturity accumulated most capsaicinoids.