Horticulturae

Jinggang honey pomelo (Citrus maxima (Burm.) Merr.), a regional cultivar group from Jiangxi Province, China, remains insufficiently characterized. This study evaluated morphological, peel-color, structural, edible, and physicochemical traits of ‘Jinlan’, ‘Jinsha’, and ‘Taoxi’ at immature (July) and commercial maturity (October–November) stages. The cultivars showed distinct developmental trajectories. At maturity, ‘Jinsha’ had the strongest late-stage growth (~186% fruit-weight increase; 9.0-fold flesh-weight gain) and high juice yield and edible rate. ‘Taoxi’ produced large fruits with the highest soluble solids content and titratable acidity, but retained substantial seed loads (69.15 ± 7.73 seeds per fruit). ‘Jinlan’ showed moderate enlargement but the highest mature-stage vitamin C content and retention. Peel-color development was cultivar-specific, with total color change following ‘Jinsha’ > ‘Taoxi’ > ‘Jinlan’. Within the local commercial harvest window, both soluble solids and titratable acidity increased, but the proportional increase in TA exceeded that of SSC, so the sugar–acid ratio declined in all three cultivars. Integrated principal component analysis (PCA) of 17 quantitative traits explained 82.51% of total variance in the first three components, confirming multidimensional quality differentiation jointly shaped by developmental stage and cultivar. These findings characterize cultivar-specific quality profiles, inform targeted market positioning, and provide a basis for future studies on harvest optimization and quality grading of Jinggang honey pomelo.

Atemoya is a climacteric and highly perishable fruit prone to cracking during ripening—a factor that limits its shelf life and marketability. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the effect of gibberellic acid and calcium on reducing cracking and preserving atemoyas grown under semi-arid conditions and stored under refrigeration. Calcium and gibberellic acid applications were performed at 7, 27, 47, 67, and 87 days, with fruit harvest occurring 121 days after pollination. A completely randomized design (CRD) was used in a 4 × 6 factorial scheme (Control, Calcium, Gibberellic Acid, and Calcium + Gibberellic Acid [Ca + GA₃]) with six cold storage periods (0, 3, 6, 9, 12, and 15 days) and five replicates. Fruits were subjected to the following evaluations: appearance, mass, fresh mass loss, cracking index, pulp firmness, pH, titratable acidity, soluble solids, vitamin C, chlorophyll, electrolyte leakage, total sugars, starch, DPPH, polyphenols, peroxidase and polyphenoloxidase enzyme activity, and mineral quantification. The results demonstrated that Ca and Ca+GA₃ treatments favored a reduction in cracking and increased bioactive compounds—such as phenols, vitamin C, and chlorophyll—contributing to delayed senescence through reduced electrolyte leakage. Furthermore, the refrigerated fruits remained suitable for consumption for up to twelve days, regardless of the treatment.

Tea (Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze) quality is shaped by soil, but comparisons among Jeju soil types are lacking. ‘Sangmok’ cuttings were grown for 33 months in three Jeju soils under identical greenhouse conditions—black volcanic ash soil (B-VAS), very dark-brown volcanic ash soil (VDB-VAS), and dark-brown non-volcanic ash soil (DB-NVAS)—and compared for survival, growth, and leaf amino acid and catechin profiles. Volcanic ash soils had more organic matter and nitrogen but less phosphorus and micronutrients than DB-NVAS. Survival (88.9%, 50.0%, and 55.6%; not statistically significant) and height increase (410.9%, 302.2%, and 116.1%) in B-VAS, VDB-VAS, and DB-NVAS were numerically greatest in B-VAS. The final DB-NVAS height-increase value reflects a single surviving plant and should be interpreted with caution. Total amino acids and theanine were 2.6- to 3.6-fold higher in volcanic ash soils than in DB-NVAS, whereas epigallocatechin (EGC) and epicatechin (EC) were higher in DB-NVAS, giving catechin quality index (CQI) values of 3.83, 3.13, and 2.20 and amino acid/catechin (A/C) ratios of 0.31, 0.28, and 0.10. In this pilot planting, survival was numerically highest in B-VAS, and the volcanic ash soils showed greater growth and higher amino acid levels in the pooled shoot samples, whereas the non-volcanic ash soil showed higher catechin accumulation despite weaker growth; these soil-type-level patterns are testable hypotheses for soil-type-informed ‘Sangmok’ cultivation that require confirmation in replicated trials.