Investigation of phytochemical compounds and antioxidant capacity of 11 cultivars and genotypes of hazelnut fruit in Rudsar Eshkevarat region

As one of the most important nuts, hazelnut (Corylus avellana L. ) contain a valuable set of antioxidants and nutrients. The quality of hazelnut kernel was strongly affected by kernel compounds. The antioxidant capacity and biochemical compounds depends more on the cultivar, climatic conditions and the interaction between climatic conditions and genotypes. The present study was conducted to determine the quality properties including vitamin C, antioxidant activity, total phenol, flavonoid and mineral element in 11 cultivars and genotypes included seven imported cultivars (Ronde dupimont, Negreta, Segorbe, Sivri, Morfineski, Fertile decotard and Sochi), and four local Iranian genotypes (Eshkevar1, Eshkevar2, Eshkevar3 and Eshkevar 4) in the Rudsar Eshkevarat region in 2017. Analysis of variance results were showed that there was significant difference (P≤0. 01) among examined cultivars for all characters and showed high genetic variation in all of the studied cultivars. Correlation analysis showed the existence of significant positive and negative correlation among some important traits. According to the cluster analysis dendrogram performed by "Ward" method, cultivar and genotypes of hazelnut in Euclidian distance 27 were classified into four clusters.