The Effect of Pedicel Length and Post-Harvest Calcium Chloride Application on the Storage Life of Strawberry Fruit

Abstract

This study was carried out to examine the effects of postharvest fruit pedicel length and calcium chloride (CaCl₂) treatments on quality changes during storage of ‘Monterey’ strawberry variety. After the fruits were harvested according to three different pedicel lengths (0-5-10 cm), they were immersed in three different doses (0%-2%-4%) of CaCl₂ solution for 5 min, then 1.0 ± 1.0 °C and. It was stored for 21 days in a cold storage at 90% relative humidity. During storage, measurements and analyses of fruit quality parameters were carried out on days 0, 7, 14 and 21. As a result of the study, it was observed that the amount of weight loss increased during storage and the lowest weight loss was in the fruits with a pedicel length of 5 cm. It was observed that the lowest values of rot in terms of fruit pedicel lengths were in 0 and 5 cm pedicel length fruits, and the best results were observed at the 2% CaCl₂ dose in CaCl₂ applications. The amount of SSC in the fruits decreased during the storage period. In terms of phytochemical content, increases and decreases were observed depending on fruit pedicel lengths and calcium doses during storage. As a result, it has been seen that 0–5 cm pedicel length and 2% CaCl₂ applications are effective in many parameters and can be recommended.