Antioxidant Activity and Productivity of Different Strawberry Cultivars (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.) Produced in a Hydroponic System

Antioxidant activity in fruits is directly related to the presence of phenolic compounds. Flavonoids, anthocyanins and some phenolic acids are present in high amounts in strawberries. However, the concentration of these compounds can vary depending on the cultivation system, the cultivars used and on the edaphoclimatic conditions. This study evaluated the antioxidant properties and productivity of three strawberry cultivars ('Albion', 'Camarosa' and 'Camino Real') produced in a hydroponic system. A completely randomize experimental design with five plants and three replicates per cultivar was performed applying the laminar flow of nutrients technique (NFT). The production cycle of the plants was 87 days and the first fruits were harvested at day 67. The cultivar 'Camarosa' produced a larger number of marketable fruits with average of 29.67 fruits per plant. The commercial production per plant was not significantly different between cultivars 'Camarosa' (341.56 g/plant) and 'Albion' (233.65 g/plant). Although the cultivar 'Camino Real' produced less fruits (11.58 fruits/plant) and lower amount of marketable mass (175.20 g/plant), its average mass production per fruit (15.24 g) was not significantly different from the other cultivars. Total phenolics, antioxidant activity and total flavonoids ranged respectively from 141.48 to 187.63 mg/100 g, 998.06 to 1177.55 mu mol TROLOX/100 g, and from 57.55 to 76.27 mg/100 g, and were not significantly affected by the cultivars. The amounts of anthocyanins in the cultivars 'Camino Real' (43.25 mg/100 g) and 'Camarosa' (35.99 mg/100 g) were significantly higher than in the cultivar 'Albion' (22.27 mg/100 g). The results suggest that the cultivars 'Albion', 'Camarosa' and 'Camino Real' are distinct in some parameters related to antioxidant properties and that these parameters are potentially useful for the selection of strawberry cultivars to be produced in a hydroponic system.