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Fruit softening is a crucial factor that controls shelf life and commercial value. Pectate lyase (PL) has a major role in strawberry fruit softening. However, the PL gene family in strawberry has not been comprehensively analyzed. In this study, 65 FaPL genes were identified in the octoploid strawberry genome. Subcellular localization prediction indicated that FaPLs are mostly localized to the extracellular and cytoplasmic spaces. Duplication event analysis suggested that FaPL gene family expansion is mainly driven by whole genome or segmental duplication. The FaPL family members were classified into six groups according to the phylogenetic analysis. Among them, FaPL1, 3, 5, 20, 25, 42, and 57 had gradually increased expressions during strawberry fruit development and ripening and higher expression levels in the fruits with less firmness than that in firmer fruit. This result suggested that these members are involved in strawberry softening. Furthermore, overexpression of FaPL1 significantly reduced the fruit firmness, ascorbic acid (AsA), and malondialdehyde (MDA) content but obviously increased the anthocyanins, soluble proteins, and titratable acidity (TA), while it had no apparent effects on flavonoids, phenolics, and soluble sugar content. These findings provide basic information on the FaPL gene family for further functional research and indicate that FaPL1 plays a vital role in strawberry fruit softening.

The aim of the study was to assess the impact of N Pro and Seactiv Complex technologies based on sea algae extracts on the yield and quality of Golden Delicious apple trees compared to the standard fertilization program. Research conducted in the years 2008–2017 showed that the tree fertilization technology and the year of research had a significant impact on the quality and yield parameters. The abundance of seaweed extracts had a positive effect on the greater number of fruits per tree (pcs.), their weight (t × ha−1; kg tree−1), the percentage of fruits exceeding 7.5 cm in size (%) and the average weight of fruits (g) compared to the control combination. In most of the analyzed study years, total yield exceeded the 90 t × threshold regardless of the fertilization program. The use of technology based on sea algae extracts during 10 years of research had a positive effect on the quality and weight compared to the standard fertilization technology commonly used in cultivation.

Cucumber is an extremely perishable vegetable; however, under room conditions, the fruits become unfit for consumption 2–3 days after harvesting. One natural variant, DC-48 with an extended shelf-life was identified, fruits of which can be stored up to 10–15 days under room temperature. The genes involved in this economically important trait are regulated by non-coding RNAs. The study aims to identify the long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and circular RNAs (circRNAs) by taking two contrasting genotypes, DC-48 and DC-83, at two different fruit developmental stages. The upper epidermis of the fruits was collected at 5 days and 10 days after pollination (DAP) for high throughput RNA sequencing. The differential expression analysis was performed to identify differentially expressed (DE) lncRNAs and circRNAs along with the network analysis of lncRNA, miRNA, circRNA, and mRNA interactions. A total of 97 DElncRNAs were identified where 18 were common under both the developmental stages (8 down regulated and 10 upregulated). Based on the back-spliced reads, 238 circRNAs were found to be distributed uniformly throughout the cucumber genomes with the highest numbers (71) in chromosome 4. The majority of the circRNAs (49%) were exonic in origin followed by inter-genic (47%) and intronic (4%) origin. The genes related to fruit firmness, namely, polygalacturonase, expansin, pectate lyase, and xyloglucan glycosyltransferase were present in the target sites and colocalized networks indicating the role of the lncRNA and circRNAs in their regulation. Genes related to fruit ripening, namely, trehalose-6-phosphate synthase, squamosa promoter binding protein, WRKY domain transcription factors, MADS box proteins, abscisic stress ripening inhibitors, and different classes of heat shock proteins (HSPs) were also found to be regulated by the identified lncRNA and circRNAs. Besides, ethylene biosynthesis and chlorophyll metabolisms were also found to be regulated by DElncRNAs and circRNAs. A total of 17 transcripts were also successfully validated through RT PCR data. These results would help the breeders to identify the complex molecular network and regulatory role of the lncRNAs and circRNAs in determining the shelf-life of cucumbers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of Aloe vera (AV) gel coating was studied on antioxidant enzymes activities, oxidative stress, softening and associated quality attributes of persimmon fruits. The fruits were coated with 0 and 50% AV-gel coating and stored for 20 days at 20 ± 1 ºC. AV-gel coated fruits exhibited considerably less weight loss, hydrogen peroxide level, electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde content. AV-gel coated fruits had significantly higher ascorbate peroxidase, peroxidase, superoxide dismutase and catalase activities. In addition, AV-gel coating suppressed pectin methylesterase, polygalacturonase and cellulase activities and showed higher ascorbic acid, DPPH scavenging antioxidants and phenolics, and lower sugars and carotenoids. To the best of our knowledge, these results are the first evidence that AV-gel coating modulates the activities of cell wall degrading enzymes to delay ripening in climacteric fruits. So, AV-gel coating prohibited the onset of senescence by activating enzymatic antioxidant system, accumulating bioactive compounds and suppressing cell wall degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foliar fertilization makes it possible to quickly provide plants with essential nutrients, mainly micronutrients, which can significantly improve the quality of yields. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of foliar fertilization with fertilizers containing calcium and microelements on yielding and fruit quality of highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.). A two-year study was carried out in western Poland in an experimental highbush blueberry production plantation. During the growing season the bushes were treated several times with the following foliar fertilizers: Armurox, BioCal, and Stymjod. The experiment assessed bush growth vigor, yield, fruit quality characteristics, sugar, organic acid, and health-promoting substance content. It was found that as a result of fertilizing highbush blueberry bushes with foliar fertilizers, the leaf blade area and plant yield increased significantly. The fruits collected from those bushes were characterized by a higher mass, firmness, and TSS content. This also applies to blueberry fruit after storage. Foliar fertilization had no significant effect on the content of chlorophyll a and b in the leaves of northern highbush blueberry, on fruit coloration, the content of sugars, ascorbic and citric acids, and the phenolic compounds in them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Apricots originated from China, Central Asia and the Near East and arrived in Anatolia, and particularly in their second homeland of Malatya province in Turkey. Apricots are outstanding summer fruits, with their beautiful attractive color, delicious sweet taste, aroma and high vitamin and mineral content. Methods and results: In the current study, a total of 259 apricots genotypes from different geographical origins in Turkey were used. Significant variations were detected in fruit firmness (FF), fruit flesh color (FFC), flowering time (FT), and soluble solid content (SSC). A total of 11,532 SNPs based on DArT were developed and used in the analyses of population structure and association mapping (AM). According to the STRUCTURE (v.2.2) analysis, the apricot genotypes were divided into three groups. The mixed linear model with Q and K matrixes were used to detect the associations between the SNPs and four traits. A total of 131 SNPs were associated with FF, FFC and SSC. No SNP marker was detected associated with FT. Conclusion: The results demonstrated that AM had high potential of revealing the markers associated with economically important traits in apricot. The SNPs identified in the study can be used in future breeding programs for marker-assisted selection in apricot. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cucumber is an extremely perishable vegetable; however, under room conditions, the fruits become unfit for consumption 2–3 days after harvesting. One natural variant, DC-48 with an extended shelf-life was identified, fruits of which can be stored up to 10–15 days under room temperature. The genes involved in this economically important trait are regulated by non-coding RNAs. The study aims to identify the long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and circular RNAs (circRNAs) by taking two contrasting genotypes, DC-48 and DC-83, at two different fruit developmental stages. The upper epidermis of the fruits was collected at 5 days and 10 days after pollination (DAP) for high throughput RNA sequencing. The differential expression analysis was performed to identify differentially expressed (DE) lncRNAs and circRNAs along with the network analysis of lncRNA, miRNA, circRNA, and mRNA interactions. A total of 97 DElncRNAs were identified where 18 were common under both the developmental stages (8 down regulated and 10 upregulated). Based on the back-spliced reads, 238 circRNAs were found to be distributed uniformly throughout the cucumber genomes with the highest numbers (71) in chromosome 4. The majority of the circRNAs (49%) were exonic in origin followed by inter-genic (47%) and intronic (4%) origin. The genes related to fruit firmness, namely, polygalacturonase, expansin, pectate lyase, and xyloglucan glycosyltransferase were present in the target sites and co-localized networks indicating the role of the lncRNA and circRNAs in their regulation. Genes related to fruit ripening, namely, trehalose-6-phosphate synthase, squamosa promoter binding protein, WRKY domain transcription factors, MADS box proteins, abscisic stress ripening inhibitors, and different classes of heat shock proteins (HSPs) were also found to be regulated by the identified lncRNA and circRNAs. Besides, ethylene biosynthesis and chlorophyll metabolisms were also found to be regulated by DElncRNAs and circRNAs. A total of 17 transcripts were also successfully validated through RT PCR data. These results would help the breeders to identify the complex molecular network and regulatory role of the lncRNAs and circRNAs in determining the shelf-life of cucumbers.

Grape softening is a complex process that is related to pectin degradation in the plant cell wall. β-galactosidases (BGALs) can degrade the galactose in rhamnogalacturonan (RG-I) pectin and plays an important role in fruit softening, but the functions of genes encoding BGALs during berry development and softening are still unclear. Fourteen VvBGAL genes were identified in the grape genome. Among them, VvBGAL3 was consistently more highly expressed in grape flesh that was still firm compared to soft grape flesh during berry development. Overexpression of VvBGAL3 increased fruit firmness and decreased the postharvest water loss in transgenic tomato fruits. Histological analysis indicated that pericarp thickness and the number of epidermal cell layers increased, and that there were more vascular sheath cells in the fruit mid-column of transgenic tomato fruits. Yeast one-hybrid and dual-luciferase reporter assays verified that VvNAC1 negatively regulated the transcription of VvBGAL3. In addition, overexpression of VvBGAL3 led to down-regulation of cell wall degradation-related genes at different stages of fruit ripening. Together, these results suggested that VvBGAL3 plays an important role in fruit development, fruit ripening and fruit softening and may serve as a target for future breeding programs. • The BGAL enzyme activities of soft-fleshed 'HXM' were significantly higher than those of the firm-fleshed 'SM' during berry softening. • Overexpression of VvBGAL3 increased fruit firmness and decreased the postharvest water loss in transgenic tomato fruits. • Yeast one-hybrid and dual-luciferase reporter assays verified that VvNAC1 negatively regulated the transcription of VvBGAL3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fruit firmness is an important target of melon breeding, as it is associated with shelf life and economic value; however, the precise mechanism that determines fruit firmness during fruit ripening remains elusive. In the present study, one hundred forty-four F2 plants and F2–3 families derived from the high-firmness melon line M2–10 and the low-firmness melon line ZT091 were used to identify major quantitative trait loci by specific-locus amplified fragment sequencing with bulked segregant analysis. Simple sequence repeat (SSR) and cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence (CAPS) markers based on the resequencing of parental lines were also used to narrow the associated region to identify candidate genes. Two regions associated with fruit firmness were investigated, including a 4.87 Mb region on chr. 2 and a 28.7 Mb region on chr. 5 of the melon genome. SSR and CAPS markers were used to construct a genetic map of the associated regions: QTL ff5.1 was located between CmSSR13509 and CmSSR13423 and explained 38.44% of the observed variation, with an LOD threshold of 17.44; ff2.1 was located between CmSSR07709 and SNP22228 and explained 28.14% of the variation, with an LOD threshold of 3.8, and this region included 106 Kb and 10 candidate genes. Quantitative real-time PCR was performed to investigated the investigate candidate gene expression at 15, 20 and 25 days after pollination in the parental lines, and significant expression levels were detected for most of the genes, including four genes of unknown function and MELO3C017519, MELO3C017520, MELO3C017522, MELO3C029506, and MELO3C029520. These results revealed a new QTL, ff2.1, for melon fruit firmness-related gene identification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the effect of preharvest 1-MCP treatment on maintaining 'Rojo Brillante' persimmon firmness. Early in the season, preharvest 1-MCP was applied 1, 7 and 10 days after ethephon treatment. The fruit firmness was evaluated during three different harvests and after the commercialization period of 3 d at 3 °C, plus 6 d at 20 °C. Late in the season, 1-MCP was applied 3 days before harvest in the fruit treated with gibberellic acid (GA) and then cold-stored for up to 60 days, plus a 6-day shelf life at 20 °C. The results showed that preharvest 1-MCP delayed the fruit softening induced by ethephon during the harvest period, and was the most effective treatment when performed 1 day after ethephon application. Therefore, preharvest 1-MCP extended the harvest period of ethephon-treated fruit. At the end of the season, preharvest 1-MCP had the same effect on maintaining the fruit firmness as the commercial postharvest application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many fruit trees, the thinning of buds, flowers, or fruits is used to increase the leaf area-to-fruit ratio (LA:F) and reduce competition for carbohydrates. Meanwhile, calcium (Ca) sprays during fruit development are also used to increase fruit quality and postharvest storage. Such practices have been recommended to increase fruit firmness and reduce fruit cracking in sweet cherries. To understand the effects of foliar Ca sprays and crop load reductions in the combination 'Lapins'/'Colt', trained as the Kym Green Bush, a factorial experiment to determine the interactions between both managements was established in the Central Valley of Chile during the 2018/2019 growing season. Two levels of crop load (CL) were established—thinned (50% crop load) and unthinned (100% crop load) during Stage I of fruit development (31 days after full bloom, DAFB). Three timings of foliar applications of CaCl2 (TFA; 0.8%) were evaluated: early 26 DAFB, later 39 DAFB, or late 62 DAFB. Natural fruit contents and concentrations of Ca were determined on unsprayed control trees. Fruit from the thinned trees were significantly larger and heavier and had a higher titratable acidity than unthinned trees did. Significant interactions between TFA and CL were observed for SSC, without a clear trend. Thinned trees were less affected by pedicel detachment, browning, and fruit decay after 45 d of storage (0 °C). In unthinned trees, a foliar CaCl2 spray at Stage I allowed a higher fruit firmness than CaCl2 sprays at Stage II and III of fruit development. The CaCl2 applications at 39 or 62 DAFB reduced the incidence of cracking in thinned trees. Natural Ca concentrations decreased during fruit development, indicating a cessation of Ca import and a dilution by subsequent growth. Our results suggest that the early reduction of crop load has positive effects on fruit quality and condition during storage, and early Ca sprays (Stage I) improve fruit textural properties, even under high crop loads. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, the use of chemicals is reduced due to environmental problems and their negative impacts on human health. Besides, their use has been prohibited in some cases. Postharvest decay caused by fungal pathogens is one of the most important challenges facing the fresh citrus industry. So, the use of pomegranate peel extract (PPE) at the concentrations of 0, 33, 50, and 100% were used to reduce decay and maintain the postharvest qualitative characteristics of mandarin fruit. After treatment with PPE, the fruits were stored for 20 days. Traits such as weight loss, decay percentage, total soluble solids, total acidity, fruit firmness, color index, and sensory evaluation were investigated every five days. The lowest weight-loss percentage (14.71 %) was obtained for the fruits treated with 100% PPE as compared with the untreated fruits (42.28%). The fruits treated with PPE maintained firmness compared with the untreated fruits. The fruits treated with PPE showed the lowest acidity reduction at the end of the storage period. At the end of the storage period, the fruits treated with 100% PPE and the untreated fruits showed the lowest and highest fruit decay (16.3% and 39.6%), respectively. The results showed that the application of PPE increased the overall acceptance of panelists from the treated samples. By increasing the concentrations of PPE to 100%, all sensory parameters were improved and could gain a better acceptance by panelists. The highest level of utility and final acceptance in pomegranate peel-treated fruits were obtained at 100%. The untreated fruits showed a lower overall acceptance rate. The findings showed that the postharvest application of PPE improved the qualitative characteristics and sensory properties, so it is recommended to use 100% PPE to reduce the decay and extend the postharvest storage of mandarin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) fruits are characterised by a short shelf life. To extend the shelf life, pre-storage hydrocooling is carried out to reduce their temperature before storing them in the cold storage. During 2015 and 2016, hydrocooling treatment on fruits of two sweet cherry cultivars, 'Kordia' and 'Regina', from orchards on the locality of Trebinje, was performed. Samples of both cultivars were subjected to hydrocooling treatment in an automatic hydrocooling system at a temperature of 0.9 ºC for 10 minutes. The treated fruits were subjected to a cooling process before being placed in the cold storage, and the control fruits were put into the cold storage without hydrocooling. The fruits were placed for 15 days in NA cold storage at a temperature of 1 ºC and humidity of 85-95%. Analysis of fruit mass, colour, and firmness was performed on fruits after harvest and after storage. The results showed a significant positive effect of hydrocooling on fruit mass, i.e., treated fruits had less loss compared to the control fruits. The same fruits had higher fruit flesh firmness during cold storage. The fruit skin had the highest intensity of red colour in the harvesting time, while in treatment and control fruits in both years the intensity of the colour decreased during the cold storage. The year showed to have an impact on all examined characteristics of fruits of both cherry cultivars.

Abstract Background Apple is one of the oldest and most valuable fruits. Water restriction is one of the major problems in the production of this fruit in some planting areas. Methods Effects of kaolin spray treatments were studied on two early apple cultivars of Golab and Shafi-Abadi under sustained deficit irrigation (SDI) in Alborz province, Iran during 2017 and 2018. Irrigation treatments were 100%, 85%, and 70% ETc and kaolin application were concentrations of 0, 3 and 6% in 2017 and 0, 1.5 and 3% in 2018. Results Results showed that 85% ETc treatment compared to other irrigation treatments improved apple tree crown volume in 2017. Deficit irrigation treatments significantly reduced fruit weight in both years. Application with 6% kaolin resulted in 33.3% increase in apple fruit weight compared to non-kaolin treatment at 100% ETc irrigation in the first year. Severe deficit irrigation (70% ETc) significantly reduced apple fruit length in both years, but 6% kaolin increased fruit length in both apple cultivars in 2017. Severe deficit irrigation treatment increased the firmness of apple fruit compared to control and mild deficit irrigation (85% ETc) in the first year of experiment. There was no significant difference between irrigation treatments for apple fruit firmness in the second year of experiment. Kaolin treatments of 1.5% and 3% at full irrigation increased the soluble solids content of apple fruit by 36.6% and 44.1% in 2018, respectively. Deficit irrigation treatments significantly increased leaf proline content compared to control in both years. In the first year, kaolin treatments increased leaf proline but in the second year, leaf proline was not significant. Deficit irrigation treatment of 70% ETc and 6% kaolin had the highest amount of glycine betaine content, malondialdehyde and hydrogen peroxide in apple leaf in the first year of experiment. Conclusions Severe deficit irrigation stress (70% ETc) increased the activity of nonenzymatic defense systems of apple trees. Kaolin as a drought stress reducing agent can be recommended in apple orchards of Golab and Shafi-Abadi cultivars as an effective and inexpensive method to improve tolerance to drought stress conditions.

Trees irrigation is one of the major activities because the fruit production is proportional to water use. The current decrease of water resources leads to the urgent need to adopt a strategy which could be applied to efficiently utilize water without affecting the growth, yield and fruit quality. Therefore, deficit irrigation is an alternative. The crop studied was apricot, 'Orizont' cultivar, 13 years old, grafted on the 'Constanta 14' rootstock. The planting distance was 4 m between the rows and 5 m between trees on the row. The split-plot experiment described here is monofactorial with irrigation strategy having three graduations. The irrigation regime consists of a fully irrigated treatment (b1, non-stressed) according to the irrigation needs (100% of ETc = ETo x Kc), a deficit irrigation treatment (b2) irrigated with half the amount of water in b1 (50% of ETc), and a control, non-irrigated treatment (b3). These plots comprised three adjacent fruit tree rows, with the central row containing five trees for measurements and observations. This research aims to study the effects of deficit irrigation on some quality indicators of apricot fruits after harvest and storage. Fruits in the b3 treatment were much firmer, followed by the fruits from the b2 treatment. The study suggests that moderate deficit irrigation can be profitable for enhancing key fruit quality characteristics.

The demand for fruits with high anthocyanin content, such as blueberries, has increased in recent years due to their health benefits. However, few studies are known on the postharvest behavior of blueberry fruits subjected to the application of plant extracts and acibenzolar-S-methyl (ASM). The objective of this research was to investigate the effect of the application of ASM and vegetable extracts (mint and coriander) on the organoleptic characteristics of blueberry fruits stored at 16°C during postharvest through a completely randomized design with five treatments. The contents of total anthocyanins in fruits (TA) did not differ between treatments, with values that ranged between 74.1 mg and 83.9 mg 100 g-1 of fresh weight. The TA tended to increase during storage and then to decrease during senescence. The firmness of blueberry fruits increased during storage, but hardness did not increase, since the fruits are softer and show wrinkling over time, indicating that the epidermis of the fruits has great elasticity. The fruits with the application of vegetable extracts showed the highest total soluble solids and total titratable acidity. The values of red/green and yellow/blue ratio increased, so the blueberry fruits slightly lost their blue hue during postharvest. Fruits with ASM application reached a postharvest life of 15 d after harvest (dah) while the other treatments only maintained quality for 13 dah.

Fruit firmness is an important trait of melons due to its effect on fresh fruit consumption, storage, and transport. However, information on the expression of genes influencing the fruit firmness of 'Baogua' (BG) melon (Cucumis melo ssp. agrestis Jeffrey) remains rare. This study aimed to identify the key genes associated with the firmness of BG fruit sampled at 14 and 28 days after pollination (dap) via transcriptome sequencing. A total of 1113 up-regulated and 2224 down-regulated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. The main Gene Ontology terms assigned to the DEGs were phosphotransferase activity, alcohol group as acceptor, protein phosphorylation, and protein kinase activity. The enriched KEGG pathways involving the DEGs were starch and sucrose metabolism, diterpenoid biosynthesis, plant hormone signal transduction, and MAPK signaling pathway–plant. In addition, qRT-PCR verified that four GAL genes, namely, CmGAL1–4, were differentially expressed at 0, 7, 14, 21, and 28 dap. Our data revealed that CmGAL1 expression was highest at 21 dap. However, the expression levels of CmGAL2–4 were highest at 14 dap. The sequence of CmGAL1 was similar to the sequences of homologs from melon and cucumber. Subcellular localization analysis revealed CmGAL1 was located in the cell membrane and cytoplasm. Our findings implied that fruit development at 14 dap, which is a key time-point, varies considerably from fruit development at 28 dap. Our present study provides new information on the genes associated with BG fruit firmness and help improve the storage and transport of BG fruit prior to processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Firmness is one of the important indices to evaluate the internal quality of fruit. In this study, a noncontact loudspeaker-based detection system was developed to evaluate apple firmness. The structural parameters of the excitation device were modified in the single-factor experiments, and the best combination of structural parameters was that the inner diameter of the gasket was 40 mm; the distance between fruit surface and loudspeaker was 95 mm. Besides, the proper posture style was that the apple was placed with its stem upward. After the modification of the Laser Doppler Vibrometer (LDV) method, the vibration response signals of 48 apples were measured to establish the firmness prediction model. The results showed that the better prediction performance of stiffness was obtained in multiple models. The Back Propagation Neural Network (BPNN) model had the best prediction performance by using parameters of elasticity index (EI), the peak value at the second resonance frequency f2(A2), and peak area S, with a correlation coefficient of prediction (rp) of 0.914; root mean square error of prediction (RMSEP) of 0.491 N/mm. Therefore, the proposed detection system is feasible to nondestructively detect apple firmness, which has the potential to be applied in online detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A two trial greenhouse experiment was carried out at Rwanda-Israel Horticulture Centre of Excellence located at Mulindi Station to evaluate seedling quality on growth, yield and quality of tomato. The seedlings were grown in different growing media and produced seedlings with varying quality indices. The growing media of peat moss 100% (T2) and sand + goat manure + carbonized rice husks 50%: 10%: 40% (T8) were revealed in seedlings with the highest mean quality indices of 31 and 28 respectively, while sand 100% (T2) presented the lowest quality indices during both trials. The transplants were planted in polybags filled with 2:1 of topsoil and kitchen manure arranged in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with four replications. Collected data were subjected to analysis of variance and means were separated using HSD test at a 5% level of significance. The results revealed that the seedlings grown in T1 (S1) and T8 (S8) consistently presented tomatoes with better growth performance and yield. S1 and S8 produced mean yield of 93.59 and 92.35 t/ha respectively while S2 had the lowest yield with 53.86 t/ha. The fruit produced from seedlings grown in T4 (S4) had the highest mean sugar acid ratio of 5.88 but not significantly different from 5.61 and 5.44 of S1 and S8 respectively. Hence, there was a positive relationship among seedling quality and growth and yield performance of tomato but not in fruit quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Prohexadione-calcium (Pro-Ca) is a recently developed plant growth retardant used in some fruit trees. However, it is important that the reduction of vegetative shoot growth does not decrease yield and fruit quality. In this study, the effects of Pro-Ca applications on the vegetative growth and some fruit quality of the Monroe peach, growing on vigor rootstock (GF 677) were investigated. For this reason, trees were sprayed twice with 0 (water + surfactant), 62.5, 125, 250 g 100 L-1 water Pro-Ca in the annual shoots reached 5 cm within a three week interval in the spring of 2018 and 2019 years. Shoot length was decreased by 28-32% for shoots treated with Pro-Ca. The average internode length was significantly reduced for Pro-Ca-treated shoots. The lowest average internode length on the shoot was obtained with 125 and 250 g 100 L-1. The effects on fruit quality were positive in this study. Application of Pro-Ca (125 and 250 g 100 L-1) increased the fruit size and fruit mass of cv. Monroe' peach. 250 g 100 L-1 Pro-Ca concentration led to firmer fruit relative to the other applications and control fruits. Two application 125 or 250 g 100 L-1 Pro-Ca applications were found more effective considering the criteria investigated. The Pro-Ca applications were found to be effective in controlling the vegetative shoot growth and fruit quality in cv. Monroe/GF-677 peach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Loquats have drawn much attention due to their essential nutrients and unusual phenology, which fills a market gap in early spring. Fruit firmness (FF) is one of the most important quality attributes. Dynamic changes in FF, cell wall (CW) polysaccharides, CW hydrolase activity, and expression of CW metabolism-related genes during the fruit development and ripening stages of two contrasting loquat cultivars were compared. Although the two cultivars possessed similar FF at the initial fruitlet stage, Dawuxing was significantly firmer than Ninghaibai at all subsequent time points. FF was positively correlated with the contents of covalent-soluble pectin and hemicellulose, activity of peroxidase, and gene expressions of PME, EG, CAD6, and POD; and negatively correlated with the contents of water-soluble pectin, activities of polygalacturonase, endo-glucanase, cellobiohydrolase, and xylanase, and gene expressions of PG, EG2, PAL1, PAL3, and CAD5. Identifying molecular mechanisms underlying the differences in FF is useful for fundamental research and crop improvement in future.

A rapid and non-destructive assessment of quality parameters in tomatoes was evaluated using a portable differential absorbance (DA) meter in order to accurately establish optimum harvest maturity. A commercial tomato variety cv. ‘BARI Tomato-8’ grown in the summer season of Bangladesh was used in this study. Different quality parameters including fruit skin colour, tissue firmness, chlorophyll contents, ascorbic acid, total soluble solids (TSS), titratable acidity and pH of tomatoes were determined using standard reference methods. Correlation analysis was performed to determine the relationship between the difference in absorbance index (IDA) and fruit quality parameters. The correlation coefficients showed good ability in estimating the hue angle, chlorophyll contents, titratable acidity and firmness of tomatoes showing ‘r’ values of 0.93, 0.91, 0.91 and 0.92-0.94, respectively. However, the changes of ascorbic acid contents and TSS of tomatoes did not follow the linear model during fruit maturation. Thus, the DA meter could most accurately predict the major quality attributes and may be used as an efficient technique for in-plant non-destructive assessment of tomato fruit qualities.

Firmness is an important indicator of fruit quality. The devices for on-site fruit firmness measurement need to be portable, low-cost, lightweight, reliable, and flexible. Existing portable devices can provide firmness-related parameters, but their measurement results cannot be converted to each other. Their measurement results are also susceptible to operator error due to the manual measurement process. To solve this problem, a prototype handheld device was developed based on sensing fruit resistance to achieve automatic on-site firmness measurement of fruit with edible peel and provide commonly used firmness-related parameters. The prototype’s precision was verified by analyzing the repeatability and reproducibility of the measurement results with four Shore hardness blocks. The relative standard deviations (RSDs) of the results obtained by the same operator were less than 0.61%, and there was no significant difference among the results obtained by different operators (p < 0.05), which indicated that the prototype could provide reliable measurement results. A case study of peaches was performed, and the results showed that (1) the prototype had better performance than a commercial penetrometer, (2) two commonly used firmness-related parameters could be predicted based on regression models between a texture analyzer and the prototype readings (R² P = 0.908 and RMSEP = 4.191 N for maximum force; R² P = 0.923 and RMSEP = 1.613 N mm-1 for initial slope), (3) changes in the prototype readings for peaches during growth corresponded with the growth characteristics, and (4) the distribution and changes of peach firmness over time could be visualized based on 3D models of the prototype readings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fruit maturation and softening are critical traits that control fruit shelf-life. In the climacteric tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) fruit, ethylene plays a key role in fruit ripening and softening. We characterized two related proteins with contrasting impact on ethylene production, ACC oxidase 1 (SlACO1) and SlE8. We found SlACO1 and SlE8 to be highly expressed during fruit ripening. To identify loss-of-function alleles, we analysed the tomato genetic diversity but we did not find any natural mutations impairing the function of these proteins. We also found the two loci evolving under purifying selection. To engineer hypomorphic alleles, we used TILLING (target-induced local lesions in genomes) to screen a tomato ethylmethane sulfonate-mutagenized population. We found 13 mutants that we phenotyped for ethylene production, shelf-life, firmness, conductivity, and soluble solid content in tomato fruits. The data demonstrated that slaco1-1 and slaco1-2 alleles could be used to improve fruit shelf-life, and that sle8-1 and sle8-2 alleles could be used to accelerate ripening. This study highlights further the importance of SlACO1 and SlE8 in ethylene production in tomato fruit and how they might be used for post-harvest fruit preservation or speeding up fruit maturation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Auxin response factors (ARFs) are a transcription factor family that regulates the expression of auxin phase-responsive genes. Here, we performed a genome-wide investigation of the tetraploid blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum cv. ‘Draper’) genome sequence. Physical and chemical properties, phylogenetic evolution, gene structure, conservative motifs, chromosome location, and cis-acting elements of blueberry ARF genes were comprehensively evaluated. A total of 70 blueberry ARF genes (VcARF) were found in its genome, which could be divided into six subfamilies. VcARF genes were unevenly distributed on 40 chromosomes and were observed to encode protein sequences ranging in length from 162 to 1117 amino acids. Their exon numbers range from 2 to 22. VcARF promoter regions contain multiple functional domains associated with light signaling, aerobic metabolism, plant hormones, stress, and cell cycle regulation. More family members of VcARF genes were discovered in blueberry than in previously studied plants, likely because of the occurrence of wholegenome duplication and/or tandem duplication. VcARF expression patterns were analyzed at different stages of fruit development, and VcARF3, VcARF4, VcARF14, VcARF37, and VcARF52 were observed to play important roles. VcARF3 and VcARF4 appeared to function as repressors, while VcARF14 acted as an essential factor in fruit firmness differences between firm and soft flesh cultivars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Food Safety & Quality is the property of Journal of Food Safety & Quality Editorial Department and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of shade screens on the physiological activity, growth parameters and fruit characteristics of the paprika (Capsicum annuum L.) plant. Plants were grown in a protected greenhouse and treated under two different shade screens, S1 (single screen) and S2 (double screens; 10% low light intensity compared to S1), during summer at a particular time of the day. The results revealed that the plant height was significantly enlarged by the S2 treatment. However, the number of leaves, leaf fresh weight and leaf dry weight were significantly decreased under S2-treated plants compared to those grown in the S1 treatment. The stem diameter and shoot fresh weight were not significantly different between the treatments. The sap flow and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) were higher in S1-treated plants than in those grown in the S2 treatment. The chlorophyll fluorescence fluctuated in both treatments. The fruit fresh weight, number of fruits, fruit pericarp thickness, fruit firmness, fruit volume, sugar content and acidity were significantly higher in S1-treated plants than in S2. Hunter values a and b were significantly higher in S2-treated plants. Moreover, the fruit length and width were not significantly different between the two treatments. The sugar content and acidity of paprika showed a positive correlation. These results suggest that, compared to a double screen for shade in the greenhouse, a single screen is suitable for the growth of paprika plants and enhanced their fruit production.

Vineyard calcium (Ca) sprays have been increasingly used by grape growers to improve fruit firmness and thus maintain quality, particularly in periods of heavy rains and hail. The observation that Ca visibly modified berry size, texture, and color in the most prominent white cultivar of the DOC region ‘Vinhos Verdes’, cultivar (cv.) Loureiro, led us to hypothesize that Ca induced metabolic rearrangements that resulted in a substantial delay in fruit maturation. Targeted metabolomics by ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry and directed transcriptomics were thus combined to characterize the metabolic and transcriptional profiles of cv. Loureiro berries that, together with firmness, °Brix, and fruit weight measurements, allowed to obtain an integrated picture of the biochemical and structural effects of Ca in this cultivar. Results showed that exogenous Ca decreased amino acid levels in ripe berries while upregulating PAL1 expression, and stimulated the accumulation of caftaric, coutaric, and fertaric acids. An increase in the levels of specific stilbenoids, namely E-piceid and E-ω-viniferin, was observed, which correlated with the upregulation of STS expression. Trace amounts of anthocyanins were detected in berries of this white cultivar, but Ca treatment further inhibited their accumulation. The increased berry flavonol content upon Ca treatment confirmed that Ca delays the maturation process, which was further supported by an increase in fruit firmness and decrease in weight and °Brix at harvest. This newly reported effect may be specific to white cultivars, a topic that deserves further investigation.

Vineyard calcium (Ca) sprays have been increasingly used by grape growers to improve fruit firmness and thus maintain quality, particularly in periods of heavy rains and hail. The observation that Ca visibly modified berry size, texture, and color in the most prominent white cultivar of the DOC region 'Vinhos Verdes', cultivar (cv.) Loureiro, led us to hypothesize that Ca induced metabolic rearrangements that resulted in a substantial delay in fruit maturation. Targeted metabolomics by ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry and directed transcriptomics were thus combined to characterize the metabolic and transcriptional profiles of cv. Loureiro berries that, together with firmness, °Brix, and fruit weight measurements, allowed to obtain an integrated picture of the biochemical and structural effects of Ca in this cultivar. Results showed that exogenous Ca decreased amino acid levels in ripe berries while upregulating PAL1 expression, and stimulated the accumulation of caftaric, coutaric, and fertaric acids. An increase in the levels of specific stilbenoids, namely E -piceid and E -ω-viniferin, was observed, which correlated with the upregulation of STS expression. Trace amounts of anthocyanins were detected in berries of this white cultivar, but Ca treatment further inhibited their accumulation. The increased berry flavonol content upon Ca treatment confirmed that Ca delays the maturation process, which was further supported by an increase in fruit firmness and decrease in weight and °Brix at harvest. This newly reported effect may be specific to white cultivars, a topic that deserves further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Strawberry fruits are perishable with a short post-harvest life. Cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD) is the key enzyme for lignin biosynthesis strengthening plant cell wall. A systematic characterization of strawberry CAD family is absent and their involvement in fruit firmness is largely elusive. OBJECTIVE: Current work aims for a genome-wide identificationof CAD family and its expression correlation with fruit firmness in strawberry varieties. METHODS: A genome-scale identification and molecular characterization for CADs were performed in the commercial strawberry (Fragaria×ananassa) and woodland strawberry (F. vesca). qPCR analysis of CAD homoeologs in three cultivars varying with fruit firmness revealed candidate CAD members positively correlated with lignin content and fruit firmness. RESULTS: A total of 14 and 24 CAD loci were identified in the genomes of F.vesca var. Hawaii4 and F. ×ananassa cv. Camarosa, respectively.Phylogenetic analysis supported a division of this family into three classes. Class I FvCAD each has four homoeologs in commercial strawberry, while those of Class II and Class III have only one or two homoeologs. Except for FvCAD2 and -6, there exits at least one pair of CADs sharing ∼97% or above amino acid identity between F. vesca and F. ×ananassa.The flesh firmness and lignin content varied greatly among strawberry germplasm. Distinct dynamic changes in fruit lignin content were observed before the large green stage, but fruit firmness displayed a similar decrease profile during fruit development in three varieties. Of the eight genes detected in F.×ananassa, FvCAD3 and -12 did not display a F. vesca-biased expression pattern during fruit development.FvCAD4 of Class I was expressed at levels positively correlated with variation in fruit lignin content at white stage.Transcript abundance of five Class IIgenes including FvCAD3, -8, -10, -11, and -12 was positively correlated with lignin content and fruit firmness, with FvCAD10 and -11 (FaCAD in previous publication) reaching an extremely significant correlation with the genetic variation in fruit firmness across three varieties. CONCLUSION: Strawberry Class II CADs were significantly correlated with the genetic variation in fruit firmness, which might expand the potential choices for improving strawberry shelf life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The plant cell wall is a dynamic structure that plays an essential role in development, but the mechanism regulating cell wall formation remains poorly understood. We demonstrate that two transcription factors, SlERF.H5 and SlERF.H7, control cell wall formation and tomato fruit firmness in an additive manner. Knockout of SlERF.H5 , SlERF.H7 , or both genes decreased cell wall thickness, firmness, and cellulose contents in fruits during early development, especially in double-knockout lines. Overexpressing either gene resulted in thicker cell walls and greater fruit firmness with elevated cellulose levels in fruits but severely dwarf plants with lower gibberellin contents. We further identified that SlERF.H5 and SlERF.H7 activate the cellulose biosynthesis gene SlCESA3 but repress the gibberellin biosynthesis gene GA20ox1. Moreover, we identified a conserved LPL motif in these ERFs responsible for their activities as transcriptional activators and repressors, providing insight into how bifunctional transcription factors modulate distinct developmental processes. [Display omitted] • Cellulose is required for cell wall formation and firmness maintenance of fruits • SlERF.H5 and SlERF.H7 act as both transcriptional activators and repressors • The regulatory activity of SlERF.H5 and SlERF.H7 is mediated by a conserved motif Pei et al. demonstrate the role of bifunctional transcription factors SlERF.H5 and SlERF.H7 in activating the cellulose biosynthesis gene SlCESA3 while repressing the gibberellin biosynthesis gene GA20ox1. The study highlights the distinct transcriptional regulatory functions of these ERFs in promoting cell wall formation and inhibiting plant growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to compare the performance of prediction models based either on the bulk optical properties (BOP) or with models based on the diffuse reflection and transmission spectra to assess the soluble solids content (SSC) or fruit firmness (FF) of 'Fuji' apples. Diffuse reflection and transmission spectra of 240 apples in 500–1000 nm were acquired using a self-constructed single integrating sphere system, from which the absorption coefficient (μ a) and reduced scattering coefficient (μ′ s) were determined. The relationships of μ a , μ′ s , and the reflection and transmission spectra with the SSC and FF were analyzed, and detection models were established using partial least squares regression coupled with characteristic wavelength selection. Results showed that neither the SSC nor the FF changed obviously during 80-days storage, and the μ a and μ′ s showed no monotonic increase or decrease pattern. The SSC prediction model based on μ a spectra combined with the baseline correction method performed the best (R 2 p = 0.79, RMSEP = 0.62), while the model based on μ′ s spectra was the best for FF (R 2 p = 0.67, RMSEP = 0.35 N). Overall, the accuracy of the model based on BOP in predicting internal quality was better than that based on reflection and transmission spectra from the same measurement. • BOP, reflection and transmission spectra of apples were acquired from the same measurement. • Changes of SSC, FF, reflectance, transmittance and BOP during storage were analyzed. • PLSR models of SSC and FF based on BOP were compared with those based on spectra. • Absorption and scattering properties performed the best for SSC and FF prediction. • Quality evaluation based on BOP was superior to reflection and transmission spectra. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• For the first time, fruit detachment forces (FDF) were determined at different developmental stages in ten cashew cultivars. • FDF varied significantly at the different stages of fruit development among the studied cultivars. • Ratio of FDF to Fruit weight (FW) (FDW/FW) reduced with the development of the fruit in cashew. • FDFs information is useful for designing efficient harvesting machines and screening of genotypes for stress tolerance and mechanical harvesting. Cashew is an edible tree nut with great nutritional and industrial importance. Cashew fruit is unique because the true fruit (nut) grows attached to a swollen flower pedicel known as a hypocarp or cashew apple. The fruit detachment force (FDF), a quantitative measurement of the detachment of fruits from the stalk, is considered as an important parameter for the evaluation of the harvesting efficiency of machines, and the cultivar's potential for machine harvesting, and tolerances to biotic and abiotic stresses. There have been no studies on the evaluation of FDFs in cashew to date. In the current study, we investigated the detachment forces of fruits at ten different stages of development according to the BBCH (Biologische Bundesanstalt, Bundessortenamt und Chemische Industrie) scale, a uniform coding system for different growth or phenological stages (701, 703, 705, 707, 709, 811, 813, 815, 817, 819) in ten cashew cultivars. Fruit weight (FW), FDF/FW ratio, and fruit firmness (FF) for different fruit development stages and fruit stalk scar area (SSA) of matured (819 stage) fruits were also studied. FDF, FW, FDW/FW and FF varied significantly at the different stages of fruit development among the studied cultivars. The FDF increased from 701 to 709 stages and then decreased from 709 to 819 stages in all the studied cultivars. The FDW/FW ratio reduced with the development and maturity of the fruit. In matured fruits (811–819 stages), FW and FF showed significant negative (p value = 0.028) and positive (p value = 0.015.) correlations, respectively, with the FDF. In contrast, the SSA had no significant influence on the FDFs. As the FDF has direct implications on the fruit removal efficiency, the results of this study will be useful for designing harvesting machines, screening genotypes for stress tolerance, and identifying the optimal harvesting stage in cashew. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The application of GCHN increased the firmness of tomato fruits. • GCHN increased the lycopene and the β-carotene in tomato fruits. • The glutathione content was increased by the application of GCHN. • The antioxidant activity in tomato fruits was increased by GCHN. • The content of proline and total amino acids was increased only by FGNP. Tomato fruits are an important source of bioactive compounds that can positively influence human health, so their consumption is very important in the human diet. Hence, developing technologies and strategies to improve the content of bioactive compounds in tomato fruits becomes essential. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of graphene-Cu hybrid nanocomposites on the quality of tomato fruits and their content of bioactive compounds. For this, the application to the soil of Graphene-Cu hybrid nanocomposite (GCHN), only functionalized graphene nanoplatelets (FGNP), and a control (T0) were evaluated. The results showed that the application of GCHN increased the firmness of tomato fruits by 12.6%. Furthermore, it was observed that the nanocomposites increased the carotenoid content, GCHN increased the lycopene content by 18.6%, and the β-carotene content by 95.2%. The glutathione content also increased by the application of GCHN, 19.3% more than T0. No effect was observed for GCHN in the content of phenols and flavonoids; however, FGNP decreased the flavonoids content by 11.1% compared to T0. The antioxidant activity of the lipophilic compounds was increased by GCHN up to 14.8%, while the total antioxidant activity was increased by approximately 6.5%. The content of proline and total amino acids was increased only by FGNP. The application of Graphene-Cu hybrid nanocomposites is effective in increasing the content of bioactive compounds in tomato fruits, so it can be a useful tool to improve the quality of these fruits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research was conducted in the experimental-production plum orchard during 2013. Some of the most important physical and mechanical properties of the fruit were investigated in three plum cultivars ("Čačanska Rana", "Čačanska Lepotica" i "Čačanska Najbolja") grafted on four rootstocks: one generative Myrobalan (Prunus cerasifera Ehrh.) and three vegetative ones (Pixy, St. Julien A and Ferley). St. Julien A induced the highest all three fruit dimensions in "Čačanska Najbolja", and length and thickness in "Čačanska Lepotica". Myrobalan and Fereley had the same effect in the "Čačanska Rana". St. Julien A influenced the biggest fruit firmness in "Čačanska Najbolja" and the smallest in "Čačanska Lepotica".

Foliar fertilization makes it possible to quickly provide plants with essential nutrients, mainly micronutrients, which can significantly improve the quality of yields. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of foliar fertilization with fertilizers containing calcium and microelements on yielding and fruit quality of highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.). A two-year study was carried out in western Poland in an experimental highbush blueberry production plantation. During the growing season the bushes were treated several times with the following foliar fertilizers: Armurox, BioCal, and Stymjod. The experiment assessed bush growth vigor, yield, fruit quality characteristics, sugar, organic acid, and health-promoting substance content. It was found that as a result of fertilizing highbush blueberry bushes with foliar fertilizers, the leaf blade area and plant yield increased significantly. The fruits collected from those bushes were characterized by a higher mass, firmness, and TSS content. This also applies to blueberry fruit after storage. Foliar fertilization had no significant effect on the content of chlorophyll a and b in the leaves of northern highbush blueberry, on fruit coloration, the content of sugars, ascorbic and citric acids, and the phenolic compounds in them.

A study was carried out on the influence of plant extract and edible coating on nectarine fruits during 2019-20 at ICAR-IARI, New Delhi. We attempted the use of different hydrocolloid-based coatings like carboxy methylcellulose (CMC) and chitosan (CH) alone and in combination with mixed plant extract (MPE) of moringa, eucalyptus and marigold on Snow Queen nectarine fruits. Fruits were coated with these coatings and stored at supermarket conditions (18 ± 2ºC and 85-90% RH) for 16 days. During storage, observations on weight loss, fruit firmness, quality attributes and sensory evaluation were recorded at 4 days interval. The results revealed that the weight loss (WL) and fruit firmness decreased with the increase in storage period, and fruits coated with layer-by-layer coatings of CMC-CHMPE exhibited the highest lowest WL and highest fruit firmness at the end of storage. The total soluble solids (TSS) and ascorbic acid content increased up to some period, and then these attributes showed declining trend. In all, layerby- layer coating of CMC-CH-MPE was the best treatment for reducing WL, maintaining fruit firmness and quality of Snow Queen up to 16 days of storage at supermarket conditions.

Monilinia laxa causes serious postharvest damage on apricot fruits under shelf-life storage conditions. Plant elicitors of methyl jasmonate (MeJA) and salicylic acid (SA) can reduce this damage, and their research can explain the background of the plant defense physiological processes in M. laxa-infected fruits. The aims of this study were: (i) to evaluate the effect of various concentrations of MeJA and SA on brown rot incidence (BRI) and lesion diameter (LD) of apricot fruits; (ii) to measure the temporal patterns for the effect of 0.4 mmol L−1 MeJA and 2 mmol L−1 SA treatments on BRI, LD and seven fruit measures (fruit firmness (FF), lignin content (LC), total soluble phenol content (TSPC), total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and enzyme activities of PAL, POD and SOD) in treatments of M. laxa-inoculated versus (vs.) non-inoculated fruits over an eight-day shelf-life storage period; and (iii) to determine inter-correlations among the seven fruit measures for MeJA and SA treatments. Both MeJA and SA significantly reduced BRI and LD. LC, FF, TAC, TSPC, as well as SOD and PAL activities in the MeJA and SA treatments were higher than the water-treated control in most assessment days and both inoculation treatments. In both inoculation treatments, the activity of POD in the SA-treated fruits was higher than MeJA-treated and control fruits at all dates. In MeJA vs. SA and inoculated vs. non-inoculated treatments, six variable pairs (FF vs. TSPC, FF vs. TAC, TAC vs. PAL, PAL vs. POD, PAL vs. SOD, and POD vs. SOD) showed significant inter-correlation values. Principal component analyses explained 96% and 93% of the total variance for inoculated and non-inoculated treatments, respectively. In inoculated treatments, both PC1 and PC2 explained 41% of the total variance and correlated with FF, TSPC and TAC and with PAL, SOD and POD, respectively. In non-inoculated treatments, PC1 and PC2 explained 49% and 44% of the total variance and correlated with LC, PAL, POD and SOD and with FF, TSPC and TAC, respectively. It can be concluded that MeJA and SA are useful in the practice to enhance the plant defense system against brown rot by reducing fungal growth and by improving physical and antioxidant attributes (FF, LC, TAC and TSPC) and the activity of defense-related enzymes (PAL, POD and SOD) in apricot fruits during shelf-life storage conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study objective was to determine the effects of field application of hexanal on pre-harvest market attributes of orange (Citrus sinensis L.) fruits. The first factor was hexanal concentration (0.01, 0.02, 0.04% and controls – untreated fruits), the second factor consisted of time of hexanal application prior to fruit harvest (7, 21, 42 and 60 days to harvest) and the third factor was season (1st and 2nd season). Tested orange varieties were Early Valencia ('Msasa'), Jaffa and Late Valencia varieties. A fruit tree for each orange variety constituted a treatment for hexanal application and time of its application prior to fruit harvest. The results show that hexanal application at 0.01, 0.02 and 0.04% equally improved fruit marketable yields by increasing fruit firmness and number of marketable fruit of Early Valencia, Jaffa and Late Valencia varieties. Number of marketable fruit increased by 34.89%, 34.04% and 42.48% over the controls for Early Valencia, Jaffa and Late Valencia, respectively. Similarly, fruit firmness increased by 11.38, 11.03 and 11.92 N/mm2 over the control for Early Valencia, Jaffa and Late Valencia, respectively. It is recommended that farmers should treat Early Valencia, Jaffa and Late Valencia with hexanal at 0.01% in order to increase marketable yield and fruit quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the effect of preharvest 1-MCP treatment on maintaining ‘Rojo Brillante’ persimmon firmness. Early in the season, preharvest 1-MCP was applied 1, 7 and 10 days after ethephon treatment. The fruit firmness was evaluated during three different harvests and after the commercialization period of 3 d at 3 °C, plus 6 d at 20 °C. Late in the season, 1-MCP was applied 3 days before harvest in the fruit treated with gibberellic acid (GA) and then cold-stored for up to 60 days, plus a 6-day shelf life at 20 °C. The results showed that preharvest 1-MCP delayed the fruit softening induced by ethephon during the harvest period, and was the most effective treatment when performed 1 day after ethephon application. Therefore, preharvest 1-MCP extended the harvest period of ethephon-treated fruit. At the end of the season, preharvest 1-MCP had the same effect on maintaining the fruit firmness as the commercial postharvest application.

In many fruit trees, the thinning of buds, flowers, or fruits is used to increase the leaf area-to-fruit ratio (LA:F) and reduce competition for carbohydrates. Meanwhile, calcium (Ca) sprays during fruit development are also used to increase fruit quality and postharvest storage. Such practices have been recommended to increase fruit firmness and reduce fruit cracking in sweet cherries. To understand the effects of foliar Ca sprays and crop load reductions in the combination ‘Lapins’/‘Colt’, trained as the Kym Green Bush, a factorial experiment to determine the interactions between both managements was established in the Central Valley of Chile during the 2018/2019 growing season. Two levels of crop load (CL) were established—thinned (50% crop load) and unthinned (100% crop load) during Stage I of fruit development (31 days after full bloom, DAFB). Three timings of foliar applications of CaCl2 (TFA; 0.8%) were evaluated: early 26 DAFB, later 39 DAFB, or late 62 DAFB. Natural fruit contents and concentrations of Ca were determined on unsprayed control trees. Fruit from the thinned trees were significantly larger and heavier and had a higher titratable acidity than unthinned trees did. Significant interactions between TFA and CL were observed for SSC, without a clear trend. Thinned trees were less affected by pedicel detachment, browning, and fruit decay after 45 d of storage (0 °C). In unthinned trees, a foliar CaCl2 spray at Stage I allowed a higher fruit firmness than CaCl2 sprays at Stage II and III of fruit development. The CaCl2 applications at 39 or 62 DAFB reduced the incidence of cracking in thinned trees. Natural Ca concentrations decreased during fruit development, indicating a cessation of Ca import and a dilution by subsequent growth. Our results suggest that the early reduction of crop load has positive effects on fruit quality and condition during storage, and early Ca sprays (Stage I) improve fruit textural properties, even under high crop loads.

Background: Apple is one of the oldest and most valuable fruits. Water restriction is one of the major problems in the production of this fruit in some planting areas. Methods: Effects of kaolin spray treatments were studied on two early apple cultivars of Golab and Shafi-Abadi under sustained deficit irrigation (SDI) in Alborz province, Iran during 2017 and 2018. Irrigation treatments were 100%, 85%, and 70% ETc and kaolin application were concentrations of 0, 3 and 6% in 2017 and 0, 1.5 and 3% in 2018. Results: Results showed that 85% ETc treatment compared to other irrigation treatments improved apple tree crown volume in 2017. Deficit irrigation treatments significantly reduced fruit weight in both years. Application with 6% kaolin resulted in 33.3% increase in apple fruit weight compared to non-kaolin treatment at 100% ETc irrigation in the first year. Severe deficit irrigation (70% ETc) significantly reduced apple fruit length in both years, but 6% kaolin increased fruit length in both apple cultivars in 2017. Severe deficit irrigation treatment increased the firmness of apple fruit compared to control and mild deficit irrigation (85% ETc) in the first year of experiment. There was no significant difference between irrigation treatments for apple fruit firmness in the second year of experiment. Kaolin treatments of 1.5% and 3% at full irrigation increased the soluble solids content of apple fruit by 36.6% and 44.1% in 2018, respectively. Deficit irrigation treatments significantly increased leaf proline content compared to control in both years. In the first year, kaolin treatments increased leaf proline but in the second year, leaf proline was not significant. Deficit irrigation treatment of 70% ETc and 6% kaolin had the highest amount of glycine betaine content, malondialdehyde and hydrogen peroxide in apple leaf in the first year of experiment. Conclusions: Severe deficit irrigation stress (70% ETc) increased the activity of nonenzymatic defense systems of apple trees. Kaolin as a drought stress reducing agent can be recommended in apple orchards of Golab and Shafi-Abadi cultivars as an effective and inexpensive method to improve tolerance to drought stress conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For 63 tomato genotypes grown under greenhouse conditions the researchers estimated Pearson correlations among eight variables: days to start of harvest (DSH), fruit weight (FW), number of fruits per cluster (NFC), number of locules per fruit (NLF), yield (Y), fruit firmness (F), percentage of total soluble solids (TSS), and fruit juice acidity (pH). Also, path analysis was estimated for yield. The crop was planted on coconut fiber substrate, and managed with fertigation. Yield showed a positive and highly significant correlation with FW (r = 0.59**), F (r = 0.54**), NLF (r = 0.45**) and DSH (r = 0.40**). The main positive direct effects on yield were exhibited by F (path coefficient-PC = 0.33), FW (PC = 0.21), NFC (PC = 0.08) and NLF (PC = 0.06), while maximum positive indirect effects on yield were exhibited by FW (PC = 0.31), DSH (PC = 0.30), F (PC = 0.22) and NLF (PC = 0.22) through TSS; and FW (PC = 0.22) and DSH (PC = 0.20) through F. On the other hand, the main negative direct effects on yield were exhibited by TSS (PC = -0.43) and DSH (PC = -0.22). It is concluded that F and FW were the main yield-contributing variables in these trials, and thus represent important selection criteria for greenhouse tomato breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Gesunde Pflanzen is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Nectarine (Prunus persica var. nucipersica) is known for its characteristic flavor and fuzzless nature in contrast to its progenitor peaches. It is an important stone fruit with immense nutrients and antioxidant capacity. The smooth texture and glossy cosmetic appeal makes the nectarine popular among the consumers as well as growers. But the postharvest life of this functional fruit is only 3-4 days under ambient conditions due to its high perishability and its unfamiliarity among the growers as its newly introduced crop causes a significant postharvest loss to the growers. Hence, this experiment was conducted to enhance the marketability of commercially important nectarine cultivar Snow Queen fruit by coating them with various plants (hydrocolloids) based edible coating. Fruits were treated with various plant based edible coating such as carboxymethyl cellulose (1%, 1.5%) and GA (gum Arabica) (8%, 10%, 12%). The fruits were dipped in various coating material and dried under ambient condition and stored at cold storage conditions (1±1 oC and 85-90% relative humidity). The observations on various physical, physiological and biochemical attributes were recorded at weekly interval. The results revealed that among the various edible coatings applied, 1% CMC and 10% GA were found to be effective in reducing the respiration rate and maintaining better fruit firmness than other concentrations of edible coating. These treatments were also better in maintaining other biochemical parameters and extended the shelf life of Snow Queen fruit to about 28 days under storage with better organoleptic properties.