Performance of some new apple cultivars for yield and physico-chemical characters under mid-hill conditions of Uttarakhand

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the yield and physico-chemical performance of 18 apple cultivars. The highest fruit yield (46.11 kg/tree), fruit weight (217.33 g), fruit volume (231.67 cc), fruit length (6.98 cm) and fruit diameter (8.22 cm) was recorded in 'Spur Type Red Delicious'. The lowest fruit yield (19.12 kg/tree) and fruit length (4.33 cm) was recorded in 'Chaubattia Anupam'; while, lowest average fruit weight (64.67 g), fruit volume (63.33 cc) and fruit diameter (5.32 cm) was observed in 'Gloster'. The maximum TSS was recorded in 'Skyline Supreme' (14.73 degrees B) and minimum was in 'Chaubattia Princess' (11.26 degrees B). However, the highest titratable acidity was recorded in 'Golden Delicious' (0.66%) and lowest in 'Chaubattia Princess' (0.14%). The cultivar 'Skyline Supreme' possessing highest values for ascorbic acid (8.25 mg/100 g), reducing sugars (9.62%), total sugars (12.42%), total carotenoids (235.73 mu g/100 g) and total anti-oxidant activity (41.95 mMTE/L) while 'Prima' exhibited lowest values of ascorbic acid (3.92 mg/100 g) and total sugar contents (6.15%). The lowest values for reducing sugars (5.13%), total carotenoids (79.45 mu g/100 g) and total anti-oxidant activity (30.66 mM TE/L) were recorded in 'Gloster', 'Vermont Spur' and 'Stark Spur', respectively. The cultivar 'Golden Delicious' is the most luminous (L*=84.86) and having the highest yellow colour (b*= 67.10) and hue angle (h degrees = 87.41), whereas 'Chaubattia Anupam' showed the highest red colour (a*= 54.15) and Chroma (C*= 67.53). From this investigation it can be inferred that the cultivar 'Spur Type Red Delicious' and 'Skyline Supreme' performed better in the region under prevailing climatic conditions.