Quality Attributes of Four Kale Cultivars Grown in a High Tunnel Ecological Farming System

Abstract

The leafy green vegetables are rich sources of antioxidants, minerals, vitamins and dietary fiber, which cannot be produced by the human body, the only way for assimilation being by food ingestion. One of the best sources of these kinds of nutrients, among the Brassicas vegetables, is kale. Dry matter content of kale is important not only for fresh consumption, but also for preserving and processing of leaves. In Romania kale is less cultivated, but present in several areas of Transylvania and the interest for its production and consumption is growing. The aim of the present research was to establish the influence of cultivar on quality attributes of kale cultivated in a high tunnel ecological farming. Four kale cultivars (Red Siberian, Black Tuscany, Dwarf curled and Scarlet) cultivated in an organic farming system were evaluated for quality attributes including dry matter, total soluble solids and insoluble fiber contents. The highest dry matter content in leaves was revealed by Scarlet cultivar, followed by Black Tuscany and Dwarf curled cultivars. Dwarf Curled recorded the highest insoluble fiber content (8.66 mg/100 g fresh matter), while Red Siberian recorded the highest total soluble solids (8.4%) in comparison with Black Tuscany. The assimilation of analyzed quality attributes in kale was influenced by the cultivar. Among the studied cultivars, Red Siberian revealed the highest total soluble solids content and good insoluble fiber content. Kale offers an abundance of nutrients that support health, thus its cultivation should be of current intereset in amonh the producers and consumers.

Keywords

• brassica oleracea; dry matter; fiber; high tunnel; kale; organic vegetable.