Armazenabilidade de maçã 'SCS417 Monalisa' conforme maturação na colheita, tratamento com 1-metilciclopropeno e atmosfera de armazenagem

The objective of this work was to determine the storability of 'SCS417 Monalisa' apple fruit in response to harvest maturity, 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) treatment, and storage atmospheres. Fruit quality was evaluated after two, four, six, and eight months plus one day or seven days in shelf life at 22°C. The controlled atmosphere (CA) and 1-MCP (1.0 μL L-1) treatments reduce fruit ethylene production and respiration, prevent rapid softening, and inhibit the incidence of scald-like symptoms, flesh browning, cracking, and fungal decay, in comparison with air storage . The combination of 1-MCP and CA provides additive benefits in firmness retention and in the reduction of the incidence of physiological disorders. CA and/or 1-MCP increase the risk of fruit developing wrinkly skin disorder. The loss of flesh firmness and acidity and the development of all physiological disorders and decay are higher in late-harvested fruit. The storage life of 'SCS417 Monalisa' apple is about two months in cold air and from six to eight months in cold CA, considering the time necessary to reach a flesh firmness of 53 N. The limiting factor for the long-term storage of 'SCS417 Monalisa' apple fruit under CA without 1-MCP is the development of physiological disorders and fungal decay.O objetivo deste trabalho foi determinar a armazenabilidade de maçãs 'SCS417 Monalisa' em resposta à maturação na colheita, ao tratamento com 1-metilciclopropeno (1-MCP) e às atmosferas de armazenamento. A qualidade dos frutos foi avaliada após dois, quatro, seis e oito meses mais um dia ou sete dias de vida de prateleira a 22°C. Os tratamentos atmosfera controlada (AC) e 1-MCP (1,0 μL L-1) reduzem a produção de etileno e a respiração dos frutos, previnem o amolecimento rápido da polpa, e inibem a incidência de escaldadura, escurecimento da polpa, rachaduras e podridões fúngicas, em comparação ao armazenamento ao ar. A combinação de 1-MCP e AC proporciona benefícios aditivos na retenção da firmeza da polpa e na redução da incidência de distúrbios fisiológicos. A AC e/ou 1-MCP aumentam o risco de os frutos desenvolverem o distúrbio superfície rugosa. A perda de firmeza e acidez dos frutos e o desenvolvimento de todos os distúrbios fisiológicos e a podridão são maiores em frutos colhidos tardiamente. O potencial de armazenamento das maçãs 'SCS417 Monalisa' é de cerca de dois meses em ar refrigerado e de seis a oito meses em AC refrigerada, considerando o tempo necessário para atingir a firmeza de polpa de 53 N. O fator limitante para o armazenamento a longo prazo da maçã 'SCS417 Monalisa' sob AC sem 1-MCP é o desenvolvimento de distúrbios fisiológicos e podridões fúngicas

Solanaceous Fruits

Catface is expressed as malformation and the cracking of fruit at the blossom-end. Tomatoes showing this disorder usually present deep clefts that may cover the pericarp to varying degrees. Puffiness is used to refer to fruit usually showing flat or angular sides. Internally, tomato locules may be partially full of gel or even empty and the fruit may be hollow to different degrees depending on the severity of the disorder. Cracking is the splitting of the fruit epicarp caused by mechanical tissue failure. Internal cell layers could also be affected once the fruit cuticle and epidermis collapse. Varieties differ greatly in their susceptibility to cracking, so selecting tolerant genotypes is one of the most effective practices to reduce the problem. Uneven or nonsynchronic ripening in a gradient across the latitudinal axis is a common phenomenon in many fruits. Sunscald results from the combined damage caused by high temperatures and radiation and consequently normally occurs on the sun-exposed sides of fruit.Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias y ForestalesCentro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de AlimentosLaboratorio de Investigación en Productos Agroindustriale

Abscisic acid on the quality of tomato fruits

The use of abscisic acid (ABA) in agriculture has increased in the last few years due to the increase in ABA commercial availability at lower costs. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of exogenous ABA on tomato fruit quality parameters such as soluble solids (SS), total and soluble pectins, titratable acidity (TA) and flesh firmness. Tomatoes from the cultivar ‘Santa Clara’ were the study followed a complete randomized block desig, with four treatments in five repetitions. The treatments were plants not treated with ABA (control), foliar sprayed with ABA at 500 mg L-1, 150 mL drench with ABA at 500 mg L-1, or foliar plus drench treated with ABA. After harvesting, the physicochemical characteristics of the fruits were evaluated in the laboratory. All treatments were weekly applied to the plants from anthesis to harvest at fully maturity. Root treatment increased SS by up to 26.12%, increased ratio SS/TA, firmness and decreased soluble pectin. According to the results, it can be concluded that the application of ABA to leaves and roots can improve fruit quality by increasing the SS, ratio SS/TA. The method of application affects the SS content

VIS-NIR portable espectrometer for non-destructive assessment of maturity and quality of ‘Gala’ apples

Abstract Visible and near infrared (VIS-NIR) spectroscopy is a non-destructive, fast, practical and reliable technique to determine maturity and quality attributes in apple fruit. However, the effects of cultivar and growing conditions on the predictive performance of the equipment must be determined before its commercial application in the apple industry. This study was carried out to evaluate the efficiency of a VIS-NIR portable spectrometer for fast and non-destructive determination of quality attributes in apples of the ‘Gala’ group (‘Maxi Gala’, ‘Royal Gala’, ‘Imperial Gala’ and ‘Galaxy’) harvested in three commercial orchards (corresponding to the production sites: Vacaria, Fraiburgo and São Joaquim) in Southern Brazil. At the commercial harvest and after three months of cold storage (1.5 ± 0.3 ºC and relative humidity of 92 ± 2%), fruit were assessed in terms of spectral data in the wavelength range between 310 and 1100 nm with a VIS-NIR portable spectrometer. After collecting the spectral data, fruit were submitted to physicochemical analysis of dry matter (DM), soluble solids content (SSC), flesh firmness and texture. The calibration models were developed using three sets of spectral and physicochemical data: (1) without separating by cultivar and orchard; (2): separating by cultivar, regardless of orchard; (3): separating by cultivar and by orchard. The calibration models were obtained by the partial least squares (PLS) regression technique. The accuracy of the calibration models for each dataset was evaluated in the validation step considering the values of the relative root mean square error of cross-validation (RMSECVr = 10%). Models developed for each cultivar in each orchard (location) were more accurate and efficient to assess DM, SSC and flesh firmness, compared to the models developed for each cultivar, regardless of orchard, or without separating by cultivar and by orchard. Therefore, VIS-NIR spectrometer is a promising tool for the rapid and non-destructive analysis of quality attributes in ‘Gala’ apples. However, the equipment must be calibrated for each cultivar (‘Maxi Gala’, ‘Royal Gala’, ‘Imperial Gala’ and ‘Galaxy’) and growing condition (orchard) in order to obtain more precise analyses of DM, SSC and flesh firmness in the fruit