RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE OCCURRENCE OF BITTER FRUIT (CUCUMIS SATIVUS L. CV. KAGAFUTOKYURI) AND THE CONTENT OF AMINO ACID, PROTEIN AND HMG - COA REDUCTASE IN THE LEAF

The occurrence of bitterness in cucumber fruit (Cucumis sativus L. cv. Kagafutokyuri) was higher in plants grown in lower air temperatures, in plants of the bitter lines and in plants cultivated with twice as much nitrogenous fertilizer as the control plants, than in plants grown in higher air temperatures, in plants of the non-bitter lines and grown with the usual amount of nitrogenous fertilizer. Amino acid-N, protein contents and HMG-CoA reductase activity in the leaves were higher in the plots that produced higher occurrence of bitter fruit.