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Agronomy
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Advances in Functional Quality of Horticultural, Ornamental, Medicinal and Aromatic...
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Advances in Functional Quality of Horticultural, Ornamental, Medicinal and Aromatic Crops—2nd Edition

A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Horticultural and Floricultural Crops".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2025 | Viewed by 2179

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Valentina Scariot

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, University of Torino, 10095 Grugliasco, Italy
Interests: ornamental horticulture; floriculture; medicinal and aromatic plants; functional quality
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Stefania Toscano

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Messina, 98168 Messina, Italy
Interests: floriculture; ornamental plants; abiotic stresses; product quality; microgreens; sprouts; germination; light response
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Following the success of the Special Issue entitled “Advances in Functional Quality of Horticultural, Ornamental, Medicinal and Aromatic Crops (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/agronomy/special_issues/7UEAEP273T)” in Agronomy, the Editorial Office is pleased to launch a second edition of the Special Issue.

Horticultural, ornamental, medicinal and aromatic crops possess numerous functional properties that are attributable to bioactive compounds such as vitamins and polyphenols; the antioxidant activity of these products is linked to these attributes, as well as to the volatile compounds, which give crops their characteristic scent and aroma.

Phytochemicals are numerous, and their discovery and quantification remain ongoing. In addition, phytochemicals are present to varying degrees depending on the species, environment and cultivation and processing techniques.

The analysis of constituents and the study of phytochemical profiles can reveal the potential of both wild and cultivated plants, introducing new challenges and perspectives regarding horticultural production and the entire supply chain.

This Special Issue welcomes the submission of manuscripts that address the field production and study of the phytochemical composition of horticultural, ornamental, medicinal and aromatic crops, as well as the optimization of environmental conditions and cultivation, post-harvest conservation and primary processing techniques.

Dr. Valentina Scariot
Dr. Stefania Toscano
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agronomy is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • agrobiodiversity
  • forgotten or underused species
  • edible flowers
  • bioactive compounds
  • mineral elements
  • vitamins
  • antioxidants
  • agronomic tools
  • post-harvest
  • processing techniques

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 2339 KiB  
Article
Chemical Profiling and Antioxidant Potential of Berries from Six Blueberry Genotypes Harvested in the Italian Alps in 2020: A Comparative Biochemical Pilot Study
by Fabrizio Araniti, Giovanna Baron, Giulio Ferrario, Michele Pesenti, Larissa Della Vedova, Bhakti Prinsi, Gian Attilio Sacchi, Giancarlo Aldini and Luca Espen
Agronomy 2025, 15(2), 262; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15020262 - 22 Jan 2025
Viewed by 778
Abstract
This pilot study investigates the chemical profiling and antioxidant potential of six blueberry genotypes: three tetraploids from the highbush blueberry species and three hexaploids from the rabbiteye blueberry species. The goal was to characterise the biochemical composition of these genotypes, grown under identical [...] Read more.
This pilot study investigates the chemical profiling and antioxidant potential of six blueberry genotypes: three tetraploids from the highbush blueberry species and three hexaploids from the rabbiteye blueberry species. The goal was to characterise the biochemical composition of these genotypes, grown under identical pedoclimatic conditions, and to evaluate the variation in bioactive compounds associated with antioxidant activity. Metabolomic and ionomic analyses were employed to identify and relatively quantify these compounds. Multivariate analyses clustered the genotypes based on phytochemical profiles, pinpointing key genotype-clustering metabolites. Significant variations among genotypes were observed. Ochlockonee and Overtime had the highest anthocyanins, phenols, ascorbates, and antioxidant activity levels. Over thirty metabolites (organic acids, sugars, and flavonoid glycosides) drove the genotype clustering. Although Last Call and Legacy had more metabolites, their antioxidant properties were lower, suggesting that phenolic quality influences antioxidant activity more than quantity. Overtime had the highest phenolic content, followed by Last Call in anthocyanins. Liberty and Legacy showed the lowest anthocyanin and ascorbate levels, while Overtime and Ochlockonee were characterised by an increase in ascorbate content. Rabbiteye blueberries showed higher antioxidant potential than highbush, indicating that antioxidant efficacy depends more on the composition and quality of the bioactive compounds than on their total concentration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Functional Quality of Horticultural, Ornamental, Medicinal and Aromatic Crops—2nd Edition)
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16 pages, 26009 KiB  
Article
Active Modified Atmosphere Packaging Helps Preserve Quality of Edible Flowers
by Nicole Mélanie Falla, Negin Seif Zadeh, Stefania Stelluti, Valentina Guarino, Manuela Giordano, Vladimiro Cardenia, Giuseppe Zeppa and Valentina Scariot
Agronomy 2024, 14(10), 2409; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14102409 - 17 Oct 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1031
Abstract
Edible flowers are becoming increasingly popular as food products, since they give aroma, color, and visual appeal and are also health-promoting compounds. However, they are a highly perishable product, thus post-harvest technologies are needed to extend their marketability. In this study, active (N [...] Read more.
Edible flowers are becoming increasingly popular as food products, since they give aroma, color, and visual appeal and are also health-promoting compounds. However, they are a highly perishable product, thus post-harvest technologies are needed to extend their marketability. In this study, active (N2: 100%) and passive modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) technologies were applied to three edible flower species, namely Begonia grandiflora ‘Viking’, Tropaeolum majus, and Viola cornuta, stored at 4 °C. Even if the flowers’ quality decay occurred differently according to the species, active MAP better maintained petal colors and slowed down the edible flowers’ decay than passive MAP by decreasing flower respiration in all three species and sugars consumption in begonia; there was weight loss in nasturtium, and better preserved total phenolic content in begonia and viola. Coupling cold storage with active MAP can be an effective method to extend edible flowers’ post-harvest life. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Functional Quality of Horticultural, Ornamental, Medicinal and Aromatic Crops—2nd Edition)
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