CHANGES IN FLESH FIRMNESS AND ETHYLENE PRODUCTION OF DIFFERENT PEACH TYPES DURING FRUIT RIPENING

To study fruit ripening behavior of commercial low-chill peach cultivars in Taiwan, different peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] flesh types were used and evaluated for fruit quality characteristics, flesh firmness and ethylene production.
Stony-hard and non-melting peaches retained fruit firmness, but the former produced very little ethylene, while the latter showed high ethylene production through 9 d storage at 20°C. Melting peaches decreased gradually in flesh firmness during 9 d at 25±2°C and were accompanied by increasing ethylene production or development of an ethylene production peak.
These results indicate that the stony-hard peach exhibited a different ripening behavior than that demonstrated by melting and non-melting peaches.
The unique flesh trait of stony-hard peach may be used as a genetic resource for improving peach shelf life and postharvest quality.

XXVII International Horticultural Congress – IHC2006: International Symposium on The Role of Postharvest Technology in the Globalisation of Horticulture

Ming-Te Lu, Chia-Wei Song, Chao-Chia Huang, Shyi-Kuan Ou

Prunus persica, fruit firmness, flesh type, stony hard peach

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2008.768.18