Table 3.
Effects of crop thinning treatments on strawberry fruit ellagic acid concentrations
| Cultivar and treatment* | Fruit type | Total ellagic acid concentration (μg g−1) | Total fruit f. wt (g) | Total ellagic acid yield (mg) | Total number of berries produced | Estimated mean ellagic acid (mg) per fruit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ‘Elsanta’ | ||||||
| 1. | Primary | 112† ± 13‡ | 71 ± 25 | 7·4 | 5·3 | 1·4 |
| Secondary | 106 ± 17 | 111 ± 13 | 12·2 | 11·0 | 1·1 | |
| Tertiary | 96 ± 20 | 107 ± 14 | 10·4 | 14·3 | 0·7 | |
| Overall totals (or mean) | (102) | 289 | 30·0 | 30·7 | 1·0 | |
| 2. | Secondary | 96 ± 14 | 83 ± 11 | 8·3 | 5·7 | 1·4 |
| Tertiary | 101 ± 32 | 46 ± 30 | 3·9 | 4·7 | 0·9 | |
| Overall totals (or mean) | (91) | 129 | 12·2 | 10·3 | 1·2 | |
| 3. | Tertiary | 92 ± 12 | 48 ± 26 | 3·9 | 4·3 | 0·8 |
| 4. | Primary | 96 ± 15 | 92 ± 16 | 9·2 | 5·7 | 1·6 |
| ‘Florence’ | ||||||
| 1. | Primary | 209 ± 18 | 111 ± 18 | 23·7 | 8·3 | 2·8 |
| Secondary | 198 ± 28 | 86 ± 24 | 15·9 | 10·0 | 1·6 | |
| Tertiary | 200 ± 37 | 13 ± 9 | 3·3 | 1·7 | 1·7 | |
| Overall totals (or mean) | (203) | 210 | 42·9 | 20·0 | 2·1 | |
| 2. | Secondary | 206 ± 22 | 67 ± 26 | 13·6 | 5·3 | 2·5 |
| Tertiary | 209 ± 16 | 13 ± 8 | 5·3 | 1·5 | 1·8 | |
| Overall totals (or mean) | (205) | 75·4 | 15·4 | 6·3 | 2·3 | |
| 3. | Tertiary | 197 ± 23 | 19·0 ± 12 | 4·1 | 2·7 | 1·4 |
| 4. | Primary | 188 ± 24 | 150 ± 24 | 29·2 | 7·7 | 3·7 |
n.s., Non-significant.
*
Treatments: 1, control—no flowers removed; 2, primary flowers removed; 3, primary and secondary flowers removed; 4, all flowers except primary removed.
†
Total ellagic acid concentration is expressed as μg g−1 frozen weight of fruit; total ellagic acid yield is estimated by multiplying the concentration by the total fresh weight (g) of the berries harvested. Data for primary, secondary and tertiary berries are the means of three replicates. For treatments 1 and 2, an overall treatment mean taking into account the total harvest for all berry types has been calculated.
‡
Means are shown plus 1 s.e.m.