Abstract

Determintion and comparison of important inorganic elements in Avocado fruits grown in North of Iran

Author(s): Seyeed Naser Azizi, Somayyeh Najafzadeh

This study reports on the analyses of important inorganic elements such as Na, K,Mg and Fe in two varieties ofAvocado, Fuerte (a natural hybrid originated fromAtlixco,Mixico) andHess (Seed plantedLaHabaraHeights, California) adopted for growing in North of Iran. Element determination was performed by atomic absorption method. In both varieties, K concentration was found dominant among the aforementioned elements (in Fuerte it was higher than Hess), whereas Na content in Hess was more than that of Fuerte. Mg was in similar concentration range in both varieties. The amount of Fe and Ca was very low; however, they were higher in Hess. Since it is supposed that the structural composition of these fruits changes with respect to the variety and climate, an elemental analysis of Persian Hess was compared with that of Florida and California Hess and finally with the Persian Fuerte. Results revealed that variety and climate were two factors which could affect the amounts of elements in the samples under investigation. The soil in which the Avocado fruits had been cultivated was also analyzed and the findings indicated that there was no relationship between the concentration of the elements in the Avacado varieties and the corresponding elemental composition of the soil of cultivation.