Evaluation of fruit quality attributes in guava (Psidium guajava L.) cultivars under the subtropical conditions of Himachal Pradesh

Introduction

Guava (Psidium guajava L.) popularly referred to as the "apple of the tropics" or the "poor man's fruit," is one of the most economically and nutritionally important fruit crops of the tropical and subtropical world. Belonging to the family Myrtaceae, guava is believed to have originated in tropical America and has since become naturalized across a wide range of tropical and subtropical regions owing to its remarkable adaptability, hardiness and low input requirement (Kumar et al. 2025) [10] . In India, guava occupies a position of considerable commercial importance, ranking as the fifth most important fruit crop and accounting for about 3.38 per cent of the total area under fruit cultivation in the country. As it contributes nearly 5.0 million metric tonnes of production from around 0.32 million hectares, with an average productivity of about 15.6 tonnes per hectare (Anonymous, 2026) [2] . Its popularity among growers and consumers stems from its year-round availability, wide climatic adaptability and comparatively low cost of cultivation. Nutritionally, guava is regarded as one of the richest sources of vitamin C among commonly consumed fruits, containing several times more ascorbic acid than citrus fruits such as orange and lemon and being surpassed only by a few fruits like Barbados, cherry and aonla (Patra et al., 2004; Mishra et al., 2005; Singh et al., 2016) [15,12,19] . Besides vitamin C, the fruit is a valuable source of vitamin A and B-complex vitamins along with essential minerals such as calcium, iron, zinc and phosphorus (Hussain et al., 2021) [18] . Despite its wide cultivation and economic significance, systematic characterization of fruit quality attributes among locally grown, region-specific guava cultivars remains limited, particularly under the distinct agro-climatic conditions of hill and sub-mountainous tracts. Such characterization is essential for the proper identification, documentation and conservation of germplasm and for guiding breeding programmes aimed at improving fruit quality traits suited to specific environments . The subtropical belt of the north-western Himalayas, with its distinctive combination of altitude, temperature and seasonal variation, is expected to influence the physicochemical characteristics of guava fruit in ways that remain inadequately documented (Rani and David, 2021; Gekonge, 2021) [17,5] . Keeping this in view, the present investigation was undertaken to characterize the fruit quality attributes of seven guava cultivars grown under the subtropical conditions of the north-western Himalayas. The study aims to generate baseline information on cultivar-wise variability in fruit quality that can assist in the selection of superior genotypes and guide future breeding efforts in this economically important crop.

Materials and Methods

The experiment was conducted at Experimental Farm and Laboratory of the Department of Fruit Science, College of Horticulture and Forestry, Neri, Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh. During monsoon season of 2018-19, on two years old orchard of guava planted at 2.5 × 2.0 m. Total seven cultivars were used for study viz., Allahabad Safeda, Lalit, Arka Amulya, Shweta, Lucknow49, Hisar Surkha and Hisar Safeda. Three plants of each cultivar that were uniform in growth characteristics, free from insect pests and diseases, growing under healthy conditions were selected for recording observations on various characteristics. The experiment was laid out on bearing guava trees in a randomized block design. Ten fruits were randomly collected from each plant for observation. Various quality parameters were recorded. Total soluble solids (⁰Brix) was estimated by using an Erma-Hand Refractometer (0 to 30 ⁰B). The titratable acidity, ascorbic acid content, total, reducing and non-reducing sugar was recorded by the standard method of Ranganna (1995) [16] . The statistical analysis was carried out for each observed character using MS-Excel and OPSTAT (Sheoran et al.1998) [18] .

Results and Discussion:

The seven guava genotypes evaluated in the present study showed significant differences for all the fruit quality parameters studied (Figs. 1 & 2), indicating considerable genetic variability among the genotypes.

Total soluble solids (TSS): Ranged from 9.65 °Brix in Allahabad Safeda to 13.23 °Brix in Hisar Safeda, followed by Hisar Surkha (12.83 °Brix) and Lucknow-49 (12.71 °Brix) (Fig. 1). Similar variation in TSS among guava cultivars has been reported by Joshi et al. (2018) [19] , who recorded TSS values ranging from 9.80 to 12.13 °Brix under Punjab conditions, with Hisar Surkha recording the highest TSS. Likewise, Pandey et al. (2016) [14] reported higher TSS in Hisar Surkha (14.84 °Brix) and Hisar Safeda (13.45 °Brix), whereas Lalit recorded comparatively lower values. Similar trends have also been reported by Singh et al. (2016) [19] . The observed variation among genotypes may be attributed to differences in their genetic makeup as well as the influence of climatic conditions and orchard management practices. Titratable acidity: Varied from 0.31% in Hisar Surkha to 0.59% in Allahabad Safeda (Fig 1 .). An inverse relationship between TSS and acidity was observed, with genotypes having higher TSS generally exhibiting lower acidity. Hisar Safeda and Hisar Surkha combined high TSS with low acidity, whereas Allahabad Safeda recorded the lowest TSS and the highest acidity. Similar observations have been reported by Mishra et al. (2026) [13] , who found a strong negative association between acidity and the TSS: acid ratio in guava germplasm. Comparable variation in acidity among guava cultivars has also been reported by Ghosh et al. (2013) [16] , Meena et al. (2013) [11] and Gupta et al. (2016) [17] . The reduction in acidity with fruit ripening may be due to the utilization of organic acids during respiration and their conversion into sugars.

Ascorbic acid: Content ranged from 126.86 mg/100 g in Arka Amulya to 205.34 mg/100 g in Shweta, with Lucknow-49 (200.18 mg/100 g) and Hisar Safeda (197.12 mg/100 g) also recording high values (Fig 1 .). These results are in agreement with the findings of Pandey et al. (2016) [14] and Joshi et al. (2018) [19] , who also reported considerable variation in vitamin C content among guava cultivars. Mishra et al. (2026) [13] further reported that ascorbic acid is one of the most genetically variable quality traits in guava, making it an important criterion for cultivar selection. Similar variation in ascorbic acid content has also been reported by Gupta et al. (2016) [17] . The sugar fractions also differed significantly among the genotypes. Total sugar ranged from 6.64% in Allahabad Safeda to 7.43% in Hisar Safeda, reducing sugar from 4.34% in Hisar Surkha to 5.02% in Hisar Safeda and nonreducing sugar from 1.78% in Allahabad Safeda to 2.57% in Shweta. The higher total and reducing sugar content in Hisar Safeda corresponded with its higher TSS and lower acidity, indicating superior sweetness. In contrast, Allahabad Safeda recorded lower values for most sugar parameters, which is consistent with its lower TSS and higher acidity. Ahir et al. (2023) [1] also reported considerable variation in sugar fractions among guava cultivars and hybrids, with total sugars ranging from 6.57-7.30% and reducing sugars from 4.30-4.84%, which closely supports the findings of the present study. Similar genotype-dependent variation in total, reducing and non-reducing sugars has been reported by Pandey et al. (2016) [14] , Ghosh et al. (2013) [16] , Meena et al. (2013) [11] , Singh et al. (2016) [19] and Dubey et al. (2016) [3] , Such variation is mainly attributed to genetic differences among cultivars, although environmental conditions and crop management also influence sugar accumulation. Overall, Hisar Safeda and Hisar Surkha exhibited desirable quality attributes, including higher TSS, lower acidity and higher sugar content, making them suitable for fresh consumption and dessert purposes. Shweta and Lucknow-49 were distinguished by their high ascorbic acid content, indicating their potential for developing nutritionally enriched products. In contrast, Allahabad Safeda and Arka Amulya recorded comparatively lower TSS and sugar content, while Arka Amulya had the lowest ascorbic acid content and Allahabad Safeda showed the highest acidity among the genotypes evaluated.

Conclusion

Significant variability was observed among the seven guava cultivars for all fruit quality parameters, indicating the existence of substantial genetic diversity. Hisar Safeda and Hisar Surkha exhibited superior fruit quality owing to their higher TSS, lower acidity and greater sugar content, making them suitable for fresh consumption and dessert purposes. Shweta and Lucknow-49 recorded higher ascorbic acid content and may be preferred for nutritional and processing purposes. The study highlights the importance of cultivar evaluation under specific agro-climatic conditions and identifies promising cultivars that can be utilized in cultivation programmes and future guava breeding for quality improvement.

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