Pre-storage fumigation with hydrogen sulphide inhibits postharvest senescence of Valencia and Navel oranges and ‘Afourer’ mandarins
2020
Alhassan, Nasiru | Wills, Ron B. H. | Bowyer, Michael C. | Golding, John B. | Pristijono, Penta
A short, pre-storage fumigation with hydrogen sulphide (H₂S) gas at 0, 100, 250 and 500 µL L⁻¹ affected development of a range of senescence characteristics of Navel and Valencia oranges and ‘Afourer’ mandarins during storage at 20°C for five weeks. The greatest beneficial effect was observed with fumigation at 100 µL L⁻¹ H₂S which resulted in reduced incidence of calyx drop, calyx browning and fungal decay and production of ethylene and ethanol for all three citrus species. For Valencia oranges, a lower total soluble solids (TSS): titratable acidity (TA) ratio was observed, arising from both a lower TSS and higher TA than in control fruit. H₂S treatment had no significant effect on the respiration rate in any fruit species. In general, higher concentrations of H₂S were less effective than 100 µL L⁻¹ and often resulted in accelerated loss of quality. The results suggest that H₂S fumigation of citrus prior to storage may be an alternative treatment for delaying the emergence of senescence characteristics such as calyx browning without the use of synthetic auxins.
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