Effects of temperature and humidity on pitting injury of eggplant fruits during storage

Abstract

It has been known that eggplant fruits show the typical symptoms of chilling injury on being stored at low but non-freezing temperature. Using this material authors have been studying the mechanism of chilling injury, and this paper reports effects of temperature and humidity on pitting injury during storage.1) When eggplant fruits were stored at 1°C, 6°C, 10°C, and 20°C, the storage period for salable condition of fruits were 9, 11, 21, and 23 days, respectibly. The major factors in decreasing of market quality were a pitting injury at 1°C and 6°C and decay of calyx at 10°C and 20°C.2) The occurrence of pitting injury was observed at only 1°C and 6°C. Pitting injury was less frequent on unripe fruits (5-7 days after flowering) and overipe fruits (24-27 days after flowering) and pitting injury was more frequent at proper harvesting stage (14 days after flowering). Pitting injury decreased to late harvesting season and holding at 10°C before storage at 1°C.3) Dark sheet subside was observed at low humidity storage and pitting injury was observrd at high humidity storage at 1°C. Under the microscope, it was found that pitting injury commenced with deformation and browning of cells which located several layers inside surface and dark sheet subside commenced with deformation and browning of pericarp cells.4) It was recommended that eggplant fruits were stored at 10°C-20°C and high humidity condition.