FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 187 MANGOS AND GUAVAS AS SOURCES OF ASCORBIC ACID* MARGARET J. MUSTARD University of Miami, Miami The food shortages resulting from the pres vgeetables, preliminary investigations were ent war have focused considerable attention made to determine the manner of distribution upon the vitamin content of fruits and vege within these fruits. A& a result of these in tables. Not only is greater emphasis being vestigations, it was decided that a representa placed upon the more complete utilization of tive sample of a mango would consist of a the recognized sources of these vitamins but 25-gram sample composed of two longitudinal every effort is also being made to find addi sections, one taken from each side of the fruit. tional sources to supplement the present lim Similarly, it was decided that each sample of ited supply. a guava would consist of a longitudinal slice Guavas and mangos* are among the tropical extending from s-tem to blossom-end of the fruits which have recently gained recognition fruit and including the skin, outer flesh, and as valuable sources of ascorbic acid. Wadding- central portion with seeds. Due to the wide ton and Cist (3) found that some of the com variation in the ascorbic acid content of dif mon guavas (Psidium guajava L.) grown in ferent guavas, it was necessary to use various central Florida contain on an average 564 mg. sized samples ranging from 5 to- 25 grams. of ascorbic acid per 100 gms. of fruit. Some The colorimetric method used for the analyses Hawaiian-grown mangos (Mangifera indica of these fruit ha& previously been described L.) were found by Miller and her associates in detail by the author (2). In a few cases, (1) to contain as high as 114 mg. per 100 gms. however, due to the high concentration of of fruit. ascorbic acid in some of the guavas it was necessary to use smaller aliquots of the ex In view of the increasing demands for addi tional information concerning sources of this tract than is recommended in this procedure. vitamin, it was decided to undertake an in Five mature mangos of each variety were vestigation of the ascorbic acid content of picked when they were fully mature but be some of the other guavas and mangos grown fore they had begun to soften. After these in Florida. The present paper ia a brief sum fruit had been allowed to ripen at room tem perature, their ascorbic acid content was de mary of a portion of this investigation. termined. The varieties', sources, number of Some of the mangos used in this study were analyses, and ascorbic acid content of these collected in Dade County, some in Palm Beach various mangos are shown in Table 1. and Broward counties, and others in Lee and The data show that the ascorbic acid con Manatee counties. The guavas were all col tent of mangos of southern Florida cover a lected from a single block of trees growing wide range. Among the higher variety aver at the Sub-Tropical Experiment Station, ages obtained were 107.4 mg. per 100 gm. of Homestead, Florida. fruit for Number 11 and 103.8 for White Lan- Since it has been demonstrated repeatedly gra; among the lower value were 8.8 for in the past that ascorbic acid is not uniformly Apple and 9.0 for Fragrance. It is evident distributed throughout individual fruits and that some of our more popular mangos- are not among those having the highest ascorbic acid * The work here reported was carried out content. while the author was on the staff of the Sub- The ascorbic acid contents of a number of Tropical Experiment Station, Homestead. firm-ripe guavas* representing various species, 188 FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY TABLE 1. ASCORBIC ACID CONTENT OF SOME FLORIDA-GROWN MANGOS. No. of Ascorbic Acid Content Variety Source Analyses (mg./lOOgm.) Average Range Samini West Palm Beach 5 25.6 23.1- 26.5 Edward West Palm Beach 5 57.4 50.9- 61.9 Amini Homestead 5 24.2 22.5- 24.7 Itamaraca Homestead 5 64.9 54.5- 76.0 Julie Coconut Grove 5 52.0 48.0- 58.2 Simmonds West Palm Beach 5 28.5 25.0- 31.0 Fascell Homestead 5 36.4 31.0- 41.5 Zill Delray Beach 5 14.8 12.3- 16.4 Cecil Homestead 5 44.3 39.4- 48.4 Sumatra Homestead 5 25.4 20.0- 31.1 Mulgoba Homestead 5 27.9 24.6- 31.8 No. 11 Homestead 5 107.4 102.5-114.2 No. 11 Bradenton 5 87.1 68.0- 99.5 Red Cecil Homestead 5 20.5 18.0- 21.9 Apple Homestead 5 8.8 6.5- 11.4 Apple Pine Island 5 9.0 7.6- 10.5 Buena Vista Homestead 5 29.0 25.5- 33.5 Fragrance Naples 3 9.0 5.4- 11.0 Adams No. 1 Pine Island 5 12.7 10.6- 14.9 Harris Coconut Grove 5 38.2 31.9- 43.8 Springfels West Palm Beach 5 22.7 14.0- 35.1 Lambha Bhadra Coconut Grove 5 16.9 14.5- 19.0 Langra Benarsi Homestead 5 14.3 13.6- 16.0 Bennett Homestead 5 50.9 46.5- 61.0 Ameeri Homestead 5 36.5 32.0- 39.5 Gibbons Homestead 5 72.2 63.5- 79.8 White Langra Homestead 5 103.8 81.7-119.7 Borsha Homestead 5 21.6 17.5- 28.5 Seedling 4-1 (Sub- Homestead Trop. Exp. Sta.) 5 22.3 20.4- 27.0 Sandersha Homestead 5 13.4 11.8- 1J5.1 Lathrop Homestead 5 30.6 27.0- 33.4 Kent Coconut Grove 5 21.0 15.0- 23.0 TABLE 2. THE ASCORBIC ACID CONTENT OF SOME FLORIDA-GROWN GUAVAS. No. of Ascorbic Acid Content Tree Designation Color of Flesh analyses (mg./lOOgm.) Average Range Min. Max. Indian Paidium guajava L Red Indian 22-11* Ruby red to carmine 3 195.7 170.0 212.4 White Indian 24-10 White 5 111.0 77.6 . 147.4 Pink Indian 23^-10 Red 5 177.6 157.6 195.6 Indian 21V2-10 Light yellow 1 142.4 142.4 142.4 Indian 23-11 Yellow-white 5 129.5 89.0- 153.6 Indian 22-10 Yellow-white 4 100.2 88.0 115.2 Indian grafted 14-10% Deep red 5 127.0 101.2 152.0 Indian grafted 13y2-10% Deep red 6 120.1 107.4 130.0 California Varieties Eloina 161/2-liy2 Yellow-white 3 26.2 16.2 40.0 Riverside 15Vfe-10 White 5 104.0 95.4 110.4 FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 189 Redland Original seedlings White to light ]trink 5 24.7 22.5 26.0 Grafted 13y2-ll White 1 24.6 24.6 24.6 Grafted UV2-II White 1 23.1 23.1 23.1 Undescribed Seedlings and Grafted Trees Seedling 10-26 Red 5 119.2 95.0 147.4 Choice grafted 18-11 Ruby red 5 100.3 87.4 112.4 Stone grafted 13%-10 Deep pink 5 143.0 124.2 167.2 Stone grafted 17y2-10% Deep pink 4 229.5 187.0 255.0 Stone grafted 17l/2-10 Deep pink 1 252.4 252.4 252.4 Seedling 16-10 Salmon pink 5 281.3 259.3 320.7 Seedling 15y2-liy2 Pink & yellow mottled 5 338.3 279.0 387.3 Fuchs grafted (s.)f 17%-11% Pink & yellow mottled 2 161.2 152.4 170.0 Seedling 16-11 Pink & yellow mottled 5 481.3 436.6 531.3 Seedling 21-10 Pink & yellow mottled 5 217.6 167.4 280.0 Seedling 17-12 Yellow-white 5 52.7 44.2 62.4 Seedling 13-11 % Yellow-white 5 107.0 94.4 125.4 Fuchs grafted (l.)t 17Ms-ll% Yellow-white 5 41.5 25.0 73.8 Fuchs grafted 18-11% Yellow-white 1 88.0 88.0 88.0 Seedling 15-11 Yellow-white 5 486.0 408.3 525.0 Seedling 17-11 Yellow-white 5 35.0 26.0 47.4 Seedling 13-10% Yellow-white 5 93.4 73.8 125.2 Lenz grafted 17-10 % Yellow-white 6 29.4 20.0 44.0 Hybrid 21-12 Yellow-white 4 305.7 253.2 359.2 Donaldson grafted or root- sprout(?) 24-11 Yellow-white 5 31.8 25.2 37.4 Supreme grafted 13V2-12 White 5 246.9 181.6 284.6 Seedling 13-11 White 5 334.2 295.7 375.0 Psidium araca Raddi Tree 81/2-12 Yellow-white 5 37.2 30.0 45.2 Psidium guineense Sw. Tree 24-11% Yellow-white 5 27.3 15.0 37.4 Tree 23-11% Yellow-white 2 40.5 37.4 43.6 Psidium coriaceum Mart.t Composite sample from several trees Yellow-white 5 35.1 33.8 37.7 Psidium cujavillus Burm. f. Tree 1210 Yellow-white 1 32.4 32.4 32.4 Psidium littorale Raddi Red Cattley Tree 26%-ll% Yellow-white 5 29.1 25.1 81.6 Yellow Cattley Composite sample from several trees Light yellow 5 39.2 35.0 43.4 ♦Numbers indicate tree and row in grove plot. fLetters(s.) and (1.) are used to indicate two separate grafts on one tree. {The identity of this group of trees is questionable. 190 FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY seedlings, and seedling races are presented cellent sources of ascorbic acid.