GENETIC FACTORS IN THE SUSCEPTIBILITY OF CUCUMIS SATIVUS FRUIT TO CHILLING INJURY

Chilling injury is a physiological disorder that limits the storage life of many harvested warm-season fruits and vegetables.
The relationship between moisture loss during low temperature storage and chilling injury was examined using fruit from 64 PI lines of field-grown Cucumis sativus. The fruit were stored for 5 days at 5°C and 65% RH followed by storage for 4 days at 15°C and 85% RH. Weight loss was determined during storage at 5°C and 15°C and pitting and decay were rated after 2 and 4 days of storage at 15°C following the chilling treatment.
A wide variation existed among the lines in the sensitivity of their fruit to low temperature.
Fruit from 8 of the lines developed severe symptoms of chilling injury and fruit from 21 lines developed no injury symptoms.
Chilling injury symptoms developing during 2 and 4 days of storage at 15°C were highly significantly correlated with weight loss during the 5 days of storage at 5°C. Crosses were made between some of the chilling-sensitive and chilling-resistant lines growing in the greenhouse.
Chilling injury symptoms of the F₁ fruit were highly significantly correlated with weight loss during the 5 days of storage at 5°C.

International Symposium on Quality of Fruit and Vegetables: Influence of Pre- and Post- Harvest Factors and Technology

Albert C. Purvis

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1995.379.2