THE EFFECT OF SOME STORAGE CONDITIONS ON THE STORAGE LIFE OF PLANTAINS

Physiological factors likely to affect the storage life of plantains at ambient temperature of 20°C were investigated using plantains of a French type cultivar Apem and Horn types, Osa and Apantu.
The pre-climateric period (PCP) as measured directly by carbon dioxide (CO₂) evolution or by inference from measurement of peel colour was used as an indicator of the potential storage life.

Of all the factors examined, water stress had the largest effect on the storage life of plantains.
Typically, an increase of weight loss of 0.5% per day resulting from low storage humidity was accompanied by a decrease of 65% in the potential storage life of the three cultivars.

The PCP was extended when storage temperature was reduced, but 14°C was the lowest temperature free of chilling injury which was observed in green fruits at 10°C and 6°C.

Treatment with gibberellin extended the PCP when subsequent storage was under high humidity (unstressed conditions), but had no effect under low humidity (water stressed conditions).

Application of low concentration of exogenous ethylene ranging from 0.013 to 2.501 ppm considerably reduced the PCP. The implications of these data for large scale handling and storage of plantains are discussed.

X African Symposium on Horticultural Crops

J.B. George, J. Marriott

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1985.158.52