University College of Agriculture, Rawalakot - 12350, Azad Kashmir, Pakistan.
Key words: ascorbic acid, branches, calcium, canopy, chemical composition, chlorophyll, essential oil plants, fruits, iron, leaf area, leaves, magnesium, medicinal plants, multipurpose trees, nonreducing sugars, phosphorus, plant composition, plant height, plant mor
Journal of Applied Horticulture, 2005, volume 7, issue 2, pages 113-116.
Abstract: Elaeagnus umbellata is a native multipurpose plant from Himalayan regions of Pakistan. The berries of the plant are rich in vitamins, flavonoids, essential oil, lycopene and other bioactive compounds. To compare various populations of E. umbellata for morphology and chemical composition, five populations from different areas of district Bagh were compared using plant and fruit characters. Chemical analysis of berries showed variation in vitamin C (13.8-16.9 mg/100 g), seed oil (5.7-6.1%), oil in pulp (7.6-8.1%), reducing sugar (6.8-8.4%), non-reducing sugar (1.4-2.2%), protein (2.5-5.1%) and chlorophyll content (5.3-6.8%) in leaves, while the mineral element composition revealed high contents of potassium (175-375 ppm), sodium (20-40 ppm), calcium (70-110 ppm), magnesium (70-86.6 ppm), iron (78.5-95 ppm) and phosphorus (110-133 ppm). Significant variation in morphological characters including plant height, number of branches per plant, number and size of thorns, number of leaves, leaf area, plant canopy, stem
