Abstract:

Watercress is a special leafy aquatic vegetable. In order to understand the main nutrient components, heavy metal contents and edible safety of watercress, 13 watercress germplasm resources preserved in the National Germplasm Wuhan Aquatic Vegetable Resource Garden were used as materials to determine the contents of 5 main nutrient components and 4 heavy metals according to current national standards. The results showed that the dry matter, protein, soluble sugar, crude fiber and vitamin C contents of fresh watercress were 4.57%, 1.49%, 0.16%, 0.62% and 38.56 mg/100g, respectively. The contents of lead (Pb), arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd) and mercury (Hg) were 0.077 mg/kg, 0.047 mg/kg, 0.028 mg/kg and 0.001 mg/kg, respectively. Compared with the known data of 32 kinds of fresh green leafy vegetables, the vitamin C content of watercress was at a higher level, and the dry matter content, protein content and crude fiber content were at a lower level. Cultivated as a dryland vegetable, the heavy metal contents of watercress such as Pb, As, Cd and Hg were confirmed to meet the requirements of national food safety standards.

Key words: watercress (Nasturtium officinale), germplasm resources, nutrient component, heavy metal content, food safety