AbstractBACKGROUNDThe assessment of the relative contribution of genotype, environment and the genotype‐by‐environmental (G × E) interaction to the performance of varieties is necessary when determining adaptation capacity.RESULTSThe influence of temperature, ultraviolet (UV)‐irradiation and sunshine duration on the quality and the composition of fruits was investigated in nine strawberry cultivars grown at three different altitudes. The UV‐radiation intensity affected both pH and sugar content, which were higher for most of the varieties at low altitudes, whereas total titratable acidity was less. Fruits from plants grown at low elevation generally had a higher benzoic acid derivative content. A significant correlation was found between phenylpropanoid content and UV‐radiation and sunshine duration. The flavone class appeared to be affected most by the variety effect, in contrast to flavonols and ellagitannins, which were highly affected by the environment. The accumulation of a number of secondary metabolites in strawberry fruits grown in an unusual environmental condition highlighted the acclimation effects in terms of the response of plants to abiotic stress. Finally, the genetic factor only appears to be more influential for the varieties ‘Sveva’ and ‘Marmolada’ with respect to all of the parameters considered.CONCLUSIONA ‘plant environmental metabolomics’ approach has been used successfully to assess the phenotypic plasticity of varieties that showed different magnitudes with respect to the relationship between environmental conditions and the accumulation of healthy compounds. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry