Comparison of the Quality of Different Mulberry Varieties Planted in Sichuan

In the present study, the basic qualities and nutritional components of five different varieties of mulberries (Hongguo No.2, Jialing No.30, Yunsang No.2, Shushen No.1 and Wuhedashi) in Sichuan were compared and evaluated by principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis (CA). The results showed that there were significant differences among the quality indicators of five mulberry varieties (P<0.05). The ranking of the comprehensive scores of principal component analysis was Yunsang No.2> Shushen No.1> Wuhedashi> Jialing No.30> Hongguo No.2. According to cluster analysis, the mulberry varieties could be divided into three categories. Among them, Yunsang No.2 of class Ⅱ had the highest content of V_C (0.77 mg/g), phenols (4.36 mg/g) and anthocyanins (1.05 mg/g). With the highest principal component score and the best quality, Yunsang No.2 was the most suitable for promoting planting and deep processing in Sichuan area to improve the comprehensive utilization efficiency of mulberry. It could be used as an alternative variety for health product development, and was suitable for the production of mulberry jam, fruit paste and dried fruit. Class Ⅰ included Wuhedashi, Jialing No.30 and Hongguo No.2 and was suitable for the production of fruit juice due to high water content (86.11%, 88.18% and 86.49%, respectively) and high juice yield (68.51%, 64.80% and 65.51%, respectively). Wuhedashi subclass was also suitable for for the production of fruit wine or as a freshly consumable crops due to its high content of total sugar (11.64%) and reducing sugar (8.77%) and relatively low content of total acid (6.70%). Shushen No.1 of class Ⅲ was suitable for processing as dried fruit and jam product with small fruit (1.60 g), low pH value (4.01), high sugar content (13.19%) and low juice yield (55.73%).