CHARACTERIZATION OF GARLIC (ALLIUM SATIVUM L.) ACCORDING THE GEOGRAPHICAL ORIGIN BY ANALYSIS OF MINERALS

The aim of this study was to evaluate the concentration of major (N, P, K, Na, Ca, Mg, S), and minor elemets (Zn, Fe, Mn and B) in garlic bulbs grown in different geographic region of Turkey. Mineral contents were determined using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES). Based on the results, the overall mean (n=88) of the major element concentrations of garlic bulb samples were determined for N (23.81 g kg(-1)) P (3.90 g Kg(-1)), K (12.,33 g kg(-1)), Ca (0.42 g kg(-1)), Mg (105.09 mg kg(-1)) and S (10.23 g kg(-1)). On the other hand, the overall mean (n=88) of the minor element concentrations of garlic bulb samples were determined for Zn (24.94 mg kg(-1)) Fe (114.69 mg kg(-1)), Mn (7.27 mg kg(-1)), B (10.02 mg kg(-1)) and Na (23.40 mg kg (-1)). Many positive correlations were found between the some parameters analyzed but a negative correlation was found between Fe and S. Hierarchical cluster analysis is a useful tool for differentiating garlic samples according to region.