Evaluation of Pomological Properties And Multivariate Analysis of Cornelian Cherry (Cornus Mas L.) Genotypes

Cornelian cherry (Cornus mas L.) is a nutritionally valuable fruit-bearing shrub widely distributed in Turkey and Europe. In the present study, phenotypic variation and fruit quality parameters of 10 native cornelian cherry genotypes (AKS01–AKS10) collected from Aksu Village (Kestel/Bursa), Marmara Region of Turkey, were investigated to identify superior accessions for breeding and conservation. Physical-pomological parameters (fruit width, length, weight, seed dimensions, flesh weight) and chemical parameters (SSC, titratable acidity, pH) were evaluated over two harvest seasons (2021–2022). Pearson correlation analysis and principal component analysis (PCA) were applied to reveal trait inter-relationships and genotype clustering patterns. Among the genotypes, AKS03 exhibited the greatest fruit width (17.22 mm), fruit length (23.28 mm), and SSC (18.66%), while AKS01 had the highest flesh weight (4.81 g) and AKS05 the greatest fruit weight (5.28 g). Fruit width showed a very strong positive correlation with titratable acidity (r = 0.949, p < 0.01), and fruit length with flesh weight (r = 0.996, p < 0.01) and seed weight (r = 1.000, p < 0.01). PCA revealed that the first two principal components explained 71.68% of total variance, with PC1 (55.71%) representing a general size-quality axis. Genotypes separated clearly into three groups in biplot space. These findings contribute to the characterization of native cornelian cherry genetic resources in Turkey and provide a basis for future breeding programs.