It was found that the taste and quality of tomato fruit can significantly depend on the cultivar, growing conditions, fruit maturity stage, and post-harvest treatments. This study aimed to compare the effects of growing conditions, such as the use of diffusion glass and LED supplementary light (LED+D), with diffusion and standard glass and HPS lamps (HPS+D; HPS) on the quality and post-harvest shelf life of pink tomato fruit cv. ‘Tomimaru Muchoo F1’ in relation to fruit maturity stage and storage temperature. Fruits were harvested at three ripening stages – mature green (MG), breaker (B) and fully ripe (FR). Fruits of each maturity stage were stored under controlled conditions in a cold store at 12 °C for MG and B fruits and at 6 °C for FR fruits (at 85% relative humidity), and 20 °C for all ripening stages (at about 50% relative humidity). Physiological weight loss, dry weight, hardness of fruit, fruit color ( L*, a*, b*, a*/b*), total soluble solids, total sugars, ascorbic acid, titratable acidity, pH, lutein, lycopene, a-carotene, b-carotene were determined. Pink tomato fruits harvested from LED-lighted plants in combination with diffusion glass showed the highest shelf life and post-harvest quality compared to fruits from HPS-lighted plants and HPS-lighted crops in combination with diffusion glass. Stored pink tomato fruits from the LED+D combination were characterized by significantly higher total sugars, vitamin C and β-carotene content than fruits from the combination HPS and HPS+D. Tomato fruits, regardless of the maturity stage, at 20 °C had higher fresh weight loss and lower fruit firmness during storage compared to those stored at lower temperatures. Pink tomato fruits stored in higher temperature colored faster and contained a higher concentration of components such as total soluble solids or ascorbic acid and carotenoids.

The influence of long-term storage in cold store conditions on the quality of eight carrot cultivars was investigated. Cultivars chosen for the experiment were – ‘Cesaro’, ‘Jaguar’, ‘Nelix’, ‘Perfekcja’, ‘Recoleta’, ‘Sirus’, ‘Teldino’, ‘Nebula’. The quality was determined in freshly harvested carrots and carrots stored for 8 months. There were determined: weight losses, percentage of carrots with disease symptoms, dry matter content, sugars content, nitrates and nitrites content and sensory quality. Sensory quality was evaluated in the expert panel, with quantitative descriptive analysis (QDA). Of investigated carrot cultivars the lowest storage losses was shown by ‘Teldino’ – in respect of weight losses, and ‘Perfekcja’ – in respect of rotting. Storage resulted in changing the content of dry matter, decreasing sugars content but it did not affect nitrates content. The influence of storage on the sensory quality was significant in case of some attributes: firmness, juiciness, bitter taste intensity and, for some cultivars, also sweet taste intensity.

The objective of the study was to evaluate yield, mineral nutrients uptake and nutrient demands of cucumber plants in winter cultivation with HPS and LED supplementary lighting. The experiment was carried out in the three variants: 1) HPS - top light only; 2) HPS + LED - top light + 2 lines of LED inter-row light; 3) LED + LED - top LED + 2-line LED inter-row light. In these variants the same PAR intensity level, of about 320 mu mol m(-2 )s(-1)(PPFD), was provided. Midi-cucumber parthenocarpic cultivar 'Svyatogor' F1, of high shade tolerance and 18-22 cm fruit lenght, was grown for 17 weeks during winter, in mineral-rock slabs. The plants were trained on a single stem up a string, according to the 'high wire system' method. Number and weight of every-day harvested fruit were determined. On the basis of monitoring, content of macro- and micro-elements in drip and drain solutions that was undertaken during every two-week period and constant monitoring of total daily drip irrigation quantity with nutrient solution per one plant, as well as total daily drain of the nutrient solution, the daily uptake of nutrient solutions and nutrients per one plant was calculated. The nutrient status of the plants was determined by leaf samples analysis performed for the younger, upper 3rd-5th leaves, as well as for the older, 10th-12th, lower leaves. Cucumber plants were characterized by stable yield and showed high fruit yield of very good quality. The highest yield was found for the plants grown with supplementary lighting with LED + LED. Leaves from the plants grown with the standard HPS top lighting showed faster senescence than the leaves of the plants grown with inter-row lighting. This is evidenced by a higher concentration of Ca, Mg, S, Mn and B ions, together with a lower concentration of K ions, in 10th-12th leaves in the plants grown with the standard HPS top lighting, compared with the plants grown with the HPS + LED lighting, as well as with the LED + LED lighting. The plants grown with the inter-row lighting showed a higher nutritional demands than the plants grown with the standard HPS top lighting. Parallelly used LED top lighting resulted in a higher and more stable yield, compared to standard HPS lighting conditions.

Mentha species are one of the world oldest and popular herbs, that are used in cosmetic and food industry, as well as tea for their medical properties. Due the consumer perception of ecological production and aromatic plants production waste utilization the objective of this work was to determine differences in chemical content and colour among different varieties and parts of Mentha plants ecologically grown in Lithuania. In mint leaves there were determined: content of essential oils, dry matter, soluble solids, ascorbic acid, crude fibre, crude ash, photosynthetic pigments and colour CIE L*a*b*parameters. In the case of mint plants stems, the same analyses were performed except ascorbic acid, soluble solids and colour. The highest content of essential oils were found in Mentha spicata L. 'Moroccan' and Mentha piperita L. 'Glacialis' leaves, while the least in Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. 'Variegata'. The content of essential oils in the stems was minor and did not depend on mint variety. Plant parts differ significantly in respect of chemical composition. Amount of dry matter in mint leaves and stems was very similar, while crude ash in the leaves was twice higher than in the stems. Content of crude fibre in the leaves did not differ significantly in all investigated varieties and was 3.6 times lower comparing with the stems. Average ratio of chlorophyll a to b in the leaves was equal to 2.78, while in stems equal to 2.83. The lightest was Mentha suaveolens 'Variegata', the darkest Mentha spicata L. 'Moroccan' and the greenest Mentha piperita L. 'Swiss' leaves. Mints and their parts differ in chemical content and can have widespread usage not only for production of high-value natural products but in addition as alternative fibrous biomass plants.

The aim of this study was to determine the influence of dipping in tap and hot water (53 or 55 °C) before storage and conditions during short-term storage: 4 days at 18–20 °C temperature or 7 days at 0 or 5 °C, on contents of total polyphenols, ascorbic acid, antiradical activity, and sensory quality of leaves of wild rocket (Diplotaxis tenuifolia L.). The highest sensory values, ascorbic acid contents, and antiradical activity were found in fresh leaves. Treatments with tap and hot water before storage reduced ascorbic acid contents and antiradical activity, as well as most sensory parameters regardless of storage conditions. The highest overall quality of wild rocket after storage for 4 days at 18–20 °C was found for leaves not dipped or dipped in tap water. Dipping of the wild rocket in the water at 53 or 55 °C for 3 or 5 s did not improve the overall quality of stored leaves compared with leaves not dipped or dipped in tap water.

The aim of this study was to determine the level of antioxidants in the seeds of wheat, lentil, pea, radish, broccoli, alfalfa, sunflower and amaranth germinated for 24, 72 and 120 hours. Following germination, the highest increases in the total phenols corresponded to 5.39, 4.62 and 2.20 times in broccoli, radish and alfalfa seeds respectively. The 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity was higher after germination for 120 hours in all the seed types as compared with the non-germinated seeds. In radish, sunflower and alfalfa seeds, the ability to scavenge ABTS increased by 5.19, 1.34 and 2.90 times respectively, after germination. According to the different changes in the amounts of tocopherol isomers in germinating seeds can be summarized, that the α-tocopherol content increased and that of β-, γ-, δ-tocopherol decreased irrespective of the species, therefore suitable for germination time and seeds variety allows having products with a high nutritional and antioxidant properties.

IT systems. During the last years, they have been developed and they have gained new functionalities. An appropriately developed information system allows to achieve the set goals with less use of the entity’s resources. This allows to achieve a competitive advantage and create additional value, which translates into an increase in the value of the entity.

Quality of lettuce relates to growing conditions, cultivar and storage conditions. There is a need to introduce in the plant production a forecast system for abiotic stresses to enable recognizing early changes of the plant quality before visual changes occur, based on non-destructive measurement methods. The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between photochemical processes dynamics and quality parameters of the lettuce. The results will be useful to assess the quality and storage ability of the lettuce and to determine chlorophyll fluorescence parameters, which could well characterize early changes of quality during plant production and storage. Two cultivars of lettuce were investigated 'Omega' F1 - butterhead lettuce type, and 'Aficion' F1 - 'Batavia' type, which were grown in three hydroponic systems: in mineral wool slabs, coconut fibre, and NFT (nutrient film technique). The harvested plants were tested after 3 d and after 6 d of storage. The results of this study showed that lettuce of 'Aficion' F1 and 'Omega' F1 cvs. differ significantly in yield, quality and different ChIF parameters. 'Aficion' F1 of 'Batavia' type was characterized by higher dry mass, soluble solids, Chl a, Chl b and carotenoid contents than the 'Omega' F1 plants. Only 'Omega' cultivar showed reaction to the growing medium used. The influence of storage period on both cultivars was similar. Storage for 3 d period particularly affected decreasing of SPAD index, and the chlorophyll fluorescence parameters such as PI total, Area, Fo, Fm, Fv, Reo / CSo and increasing of ABS / RC, k(p) / ABS x k(F) and k(N) / ABS x k(F). In general, 'Aficion' plants photosynthetic apparatus was significantly less modified during the storage. The level of degradation of the plant tissues during storage has a different effect on structure and reactions in photosynthetic light phase parameters in leaves. The analysis of the photoinduced chlorophyll fluorescence rise allows to monitor the damage dynamics in thylakoid membranes and connect them with the quality parameters of plant tissue.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of biodynamic (BD) preparations 500 and 501 on the quality of white mulberry (Morus alba L.) leaves. Leaves of the two mulberry cultivars, Plodovaja 3 and Turchanka, were collected in September 2015 and 2016. Quantitative determinations of phenolic, flavonoid and chlorogenic acid concentrations in mulberry leaves were conducted by UPLC methods. The results showed that the total phenolic compounds concentration (TPCC) and total flavonoid concentration (TFC) in the samples ranged from 4483 to 5005 and from 2944 to 3292 mg ChAE 100 g(-1) DM, respectively, with leaves of Turchanka containing the highest concentrations and significant differences between the cultivars for treatments with BD application. The major flavonoids in the mulberry leaves were quercetin-acetylhexoside, isoquercitrin, rutin, kaempferol-acetylhexoside and astragalin, and the concentration of these varied depending on the cultivar (apart from for isoquercitrin and astragalin). The results demonstrated that BD preparations influenced the TPCCs of the two cultivars differently. The application of BD preparation 500 significantly increased the total phenolic and flavonoid concentrations in the leaves of Turchanka by 3.62% and 6.1%, respectively. Using the two preparations together (500 + 501) had significant effects on quercetin-acetylhexoside and kaempferol-acetylhexoside accumulation in the mulberry leaves of both cultivars. Application of preparation 501 significantly reduced the TPCC, TFC and chlorogenic acid concentration in the leaves of Plodovaja 3, compared with the control. The results showed that BD preparations had the greatest positive effect on the accumulation of phenolic compounds in the leaves of the Turchanka cultivar.

Terminy „racjonalność” i „racjonalizm” często bywają uważane za synonimy, co jest błędem. „Racjonalność” oznacza pewną własność myślenia, zaś „racjonalizm” – kierunek filozoficzny. To samo dotyczy terminów „irracjonalność” (swoiste zjawisko psycho-biologiczne i społeczne) oraz „irracjonalizm” (określone stanowisko teoretyczne i mentalne). Wielu badaczy uważa racjonalność i rozumowanie za cechy definicyjne myślenia, co również jest błędem. Myślenie to zespół czynności, których funkcją jest rozwiązywanie problemów (napięć motywacyjnych) wytwarzanych przez tzw. układ motywacyjny. Rozumowanie stanowi tylko jeden z podtypów myślenia. Określamy myślenie mianem racjonalnego, gdy udaje mu się rozwiązać dany problem w sposób optymalny. Myślenie racjonalne polega m.in. na znajdowaniu prawidłowości w otaczającym nas świecie. Ta tendencja wielokrotnie prowadzi jednak do doszukiwania się prawidłowości tam, gdzie ich nie ma i formułowania na tej podstawie fałszywych przekonań. Ogromna ilość fałszywych przekonań oraz błędów myślenia, którym ulegamy każdego dnia, zdaje się sugerować, że bycie racjonalnym nie stanowi naszego „ustawienia domyślnego”.

The high content of carotenoids, sugars, dry matter, vitamins and minerals makes the fruit of winter squash (Cucurbita maxima Duchesne) a valuable fresh-market vegetable and an interesting material for the food industry. Due to their nutritional value, long shelf-life and health protective properties, winter squash fruits have gained increased interest from researchers in recent years. Despite these advantages, the genetic and genomic resources available for C. maxima are still limited. The aim of this study was to use the genetic mapping approach to map the ovary colour locus and to identify the quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for high carotenoid content and flesh colour. An F-6 recombinant inbred line (RIL) mapping population was developed and used for evaluations of ovary colour, carotenoid content and fruit flesh colour. SSR markers and DArTseq genotyping-by-sequencing were used to construct an advanced genetic map that consisted of 1824 molecular markers distributed across linkage groups corresponding to 20 chromosomes of C. maxima. Total map length was 2208 cM and the average distance between markers was 1.21 cM. The locus affecting ovary colour was mapped at the end of chromosome 14. The identified QTLs for carotenoid content in the fruit and fruit flesh colour shared locations on chromosomes 2, 4 and 14. QTLs on chromosomes 2 and 4 were the most meaningful. A correlation was clearly confirmed between fruit flesh colour as described by the chroma value and carotenoid content in the fruit. A high-density genetic map of C. maxima with mapped loci for important fruit quality traits is a valuable resource for winter squash improvement programmes.

The objective of the study was to determine the content of vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid) in two leafy parsley (Petroselinum crispum Mill. Fuss) cultivars subjected to different post-harvest treatments. Ascorbic acid (AA), due to its instability, is one of the indicators of leafy vegetable freshness and quality. High content of this compound in vegetables is desired because of its bioactive properties. The cultivars differ in morphology of usable parts: ‘Rialto’ has flat lamina and ‘Petra’ triple-curled lamina. The plant material was obtained in 2015 and 2016 from experimental field in Warsaw-Wilanów. The leaves were washed directly after harvest: a) in tap water or b) in tap water with ozone added. Two methods of postharvest storage were applied: A) at the cold store and B) under simulated retail conditions. In the case of cold store method (A), the plants were tied in tufts and stored at the temperature of 0 °C and RH 90 % for 7, 14, 28 days in two variants: 1) in containers, where leaves petioles were immersed in water, and 2) in special bulk modified atmosphere packaging (MAP), dedicated to fresh herbs (Stepac, Israel). In the case of storage under simulated retail conditions (B), the leaves were kept for 48 hours at 10 °C, RH 30-40 % in two variants: 1) tufts wrapped in perforated PE film with petioles immersed in water, and 2) packed to retail MAPs, dedicated to leafy herbs (Stepac, Israel). Concentration of L-ascorbic acid in the leaves was determined spectrophotometrically, with the method based on reaction of Folin’s phenol reagent in low pH. Fresh and stored ‘Rialto’ leaves were characterised by a higher concentration of AA than ‘Petra’ leaves (110 and 44 mg g -1 f.w., respectively). Significant decrease of AA after ozone treatment was observed only for ‘Rialto’ directly after harvest. Storage length had significant influence on the content of AA in both cultivars. Decrease of AA content was observed during storage period. Average concentration of AA after 7 days of storage was 85 and 44 -1 f.w. for ‘Rialto’ and ‘Petra’, respectively. After 28 days of storage the concentration was 54% lower for ‘Rialto’ and 36% lower for ‘Petra’, compared to the initial content. Leaves after simulated retail conditions showed slightly lower AA content than those stored for 7 days in the cold room. Retail MAPs guaranteed significantly higher preservation of AA in both cultivars than wrapping in film with immersing in water. Washing in ozone-added water showed influence only on AA content in ‘Rialto’ leaves wrapped in film – they showed lower concentration of AA under simulated retail conditions. Our study showed that the content of AA in parsley leaves was cultivar dependent. Ozone treatment did not have negative effect on AA during the storage. Storage duration, rather than packaging methods, plays a key role in preservation of high content of AA. However, method of packaging is important under retail conditions, where temperature is higher and RH is much lower, than at a cold room.

The aim of this study was to establish the influence of harvest time on the contents of flavonoid compounds (rutin, isoquercetin, nicotiflorin, and astragalin) and chlorogenic acid, as well as the antiradical activity in white mulberry (Morus alba L.) leaves grown in Lithuania. Mulberry leaves contain a wide range of bioactive compounds, such as flavonoids and phenolic acids, which are responsible for beneficial effects on human health. Leaves from two mulberry cultivars were collected from July to September in 2015-2016. Quantitative determinations of four flavonoids and chlorogenic acid were conducted by HPLC method and antiradical activity using the 2.2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging method. The results showed that the total flavonoid contents of mulberry leaves in the two cultivars ranged from 921.92 to 1512.02 mg 100 g−1 (dry matter). The highest accumulated rutin, nicotiflorin, and chlorogenic acid contents and the greatest antioxidant activity were found in the leaves of ‘Plodovaja 3’. The bioactive compounds in the leaves of the mulberry cultivars varied over a period of time, where ‘Turchanka’ and ‘Plodovaja 3’ accumulated the highest total flavonoid contents in September and August, respectively. In both cultivars, the antiradical activity was highest in September. There were a very strong positive correlations between the antiradical activity as determined using the DPPH method and the chlorogenic acid contents (r = 0.887, p < 0.05) and the isoquercetin contents (r = 0.848, p < 0.05).

There is increasing interest among vegetable growers in hydroponic production of lettuce. Growing medium and fertilization are the most effective ways of controlling and improving the yield and nutritional value of vegetable crops. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of different growing media on the yield and biological value of lettuce cultivated in spring period. Organic medium - coconut fiber and mineral medium - rockwool were compared to 'nutrient film technique' growing system (NFT). In the study two butterhead lettuce cultivars and one of batavia lettuce cultivar (Lactuca sativa var. capitata) were included. The experiment was carried out in the greenhouse with controlled microclimate. At about five days before harvest, the nutrient solution was replaced to water to reduce nitrate concentration in the leaves of lettuce. Marketable yield of the plants grown in the experiment was compared. Dry matter, total soluble solids (TSS), nitrate (NO3), P, K, Ca, chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b, SPAD, total carotenoids contents and leaf color parameters L* (lightness), a* (greenness) and b* (yellowness) were determined. The highest yield of lettuce was obtained in NFT growing system, compared to coconut fiber and rockwool growing media. Plants growing in coconut fiber slabs were characterized by the lowest content of dry matter and chlorophyll a and b. The differences between cultivars were also observed. After 5-day treatment of the plants with water, the biggest decrease of nitrate content was found in the leaves of lettuce grown in the NFT system. It can be concluded that growing medium used in hydroponic cultivation of lettuce affects its yield and the product quality.