Screening and classification of rosehip (Rosa canina L.) genotypes based on horticultural characteristics

During the pandemic, the interest in colorful wild small fruits increased due to their positive effects on health. Also it has become very important to offer species with high nutritional value as fresh or processed products for human consumption due to increasing world population and decreasing arable land. In this context, we characterized the horticultural characteristics of 11 rosehip genotypes grown from seeds.

Citric acid was determined as the main organic acid in all the genotypes investigated. The mean values of the organic acids obtained from all the genotypes were found to be as follows: citric acid (7177 mg L^-1), malic acid (3669 mg L^-1), tartaric acid (1834 mg L^-1), oxalic acid (1258 mg L^-1), carboxylic acid (631.9 mg L^-1), shikimic acid (157.8 mg L^-1), ascorbic acid (155 mg L^-1), and acetic acid (20.9 mg L^-1). Ellagic acid was the dominant phenolic compound (90.1 mg L^-1 - 96.2 mg L^-1) in all genotypes. The average values obtained from all genotypes for total phenolics, total flavonoids, and antioxidant activity were 37 261 mg GAE L^-1, 526.2 mg quercetin L^-1, and 93.6%, respectively. These characteristics had the lowest coefficients of variation, which indicated that all genotypes were similar regarding high biochemical with antioxidant effect. In addition, fruit width, fruit length, and fruit weight varied between 13.0 and 17.3 mm, 20.7 and 25.5 mm, and 1.4 and 2.7 g, respectively.

The genotypes were categorized according to different purposes, such as suitability for wine production, making vinegar, etc. While the pomological characteristics were strongly positively correlated among themselves, they were generally found to be negatively correlated with the phytochemical characteristics. Categorizing genotypes according to different usage purposes can improve the agricultural and industrial application of rosehip and enhance their breeding efficacy.