# Variation of Nutritional Quality Depending on Harvested Plant Portion of Broccoli and Black Cabbage
## 3 Results and Discussion
### Vegetables Nutritional Quality  
#### 3.2.1 Black Cabbage and Whole Broccoli Nutritional Value  
In Table 3, results about the average values of nutritional parameters for black cabbage seeds and leaves are reported. Furthermore, average values of nutritional parameters for each cultivar of broccoli are showed, comprising Roja harvested at two different developmental stages.  
Black cabbage seeds showed a higher content of both the investigated phytochemical compounds (TPH and ACY) than leaves and, consequently, a statistically higher TAC value. These results were confirmed by [PERSON] et al. [9], who performed characterization trials on kale, analysing the antioxidant activity of kale seeds and leaves. They found that seeds were rich in quercetin and isorhamnetin derivatives, not found in leaves, and in phenolic acids, conferring them a higher antioxidant capacity than leaves, which were rich in flavonols. The higher antioxidant capacity found in seeds is bound to their physiological  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c} \hline \hline \multirow{2}{*}{**Vegetables**} & **SSC \({}^{\text{1}}\)** & **TA \({}^{\text{2}}\)** & \\  & **(\({}^{\circ}\)Brix)** & **(\% Citric Acid)** & **pH** \\ \hline Black Cabbage & 9.55 \(\pm\) 0.31 \({}^{\text{b}}\) & 0.23 \(\pm\) 0.02 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 5.88 \(\pm\) 0.06 \({}^{\text{d}}\) \\ Roja-II \({}^{\text{3}}\) & 8.97 \(\pm\) 0.26 \({}^{\text{b}}\) & 0.15 \(\pm\) 0.01 \({}^{\text{b}}\) & 6.77 \(\pm\) 0.06 \({}^{\text{a}}\) \\ Roja \({}^{\text{4}}\) & 9.56 \(\pm\) 0.21 \({}^{\text{b}}\) & 0.15 \(\pm\) 0.01 \({}^{\text{b}}\) & 6.53 \(\pm\) 0.07 \({}^{\text{b}}\) \\ Santee \({}^{\text{5}}\) & 10.62 \(\pm\) 0.26 \({}^{\text{a}}\) & 0.16 \(\pm\) 0.01 \({}^{\text{b}}\) & 6.35 \(\pm\) 0.02 \({}^{\text{c}}\) \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular} Average of \({}^{\text{1}}\) SSC: Soluble Solids Content; \({}^{\text{2}}\) TA: Titratable acidity and pH \(\pm\) standard deviation; \({}^{\text{3}}\) Roja-II: Broccoli var. Roja II harvest; \({}^{\text{4}}\) Roja: Broccoli var. Roja I harvest: \({}^{\text{5}}\) Santee: Broccoli var. Santee. Values with the same letter were not significantly different (Test SNK \(p\leq 0.05\)). \(n=3\).  
\end{table}
Table 2: Average values of total soluble solids content, titratable acidity, and pH of _Brassica_ samples.  
functions as germination, permeability to water, protection by pathogen and insect attacks, storage, and protection of lipids from oxidation.  
In our study, the effect of genotype on the phytochemical composition and the antioxidant capacity was not evident, given that Roja (first harvest) and Santee cultivars did not show any significant difference. This was due, probably, to the low amount of antioxidant compounds accumulated in the tissues of these cultivars. On the contrary, results on the effect of developmental stage on antioxidant capacity and phytochemical composition were very interesting. In fact, Broccoli Roja-II harvest showed a statistically higher content of TPH and ACY than Roja (first harvest), associated with doubled value of antioxidant capacity. The influence of the harvest date on the antioxidant capacity of these type of plants was reported by [PERSON] et al. [25]. [PERSON] et al. [13] reported that the content of phytochemical compounds, in particular phenolic compounds, increased with the exposure to sunlight. In fact, the growth of broccoli is very sensitive to climate and light conditions [2].