Market Quality Attributes of Orange-fleshed, Non-netted Honey Dew Melon Genotypes Following Different Growing Seasons and Storage Temperature Durations

Abstract

Orange-fleshed honey dew (Cucumis melo L., Inodorus group) fruit are known for having superior food-safety, food-quality, and fruit-marketability attributes compared with orange-fleshed netted muskmelon (C. melo, Reticulatus group) and to green-fleshed honey dew (C. melo, Inodorus group) fruit. However, little is known about the production market attributes and postharvest quality comparisons of the leading orange-fleshed honey dew cultivars. Five orange-fleshed honey dew genotypes (‘Honey Gold’, ‘Orange Delight’, ‘Orange Dew’, ‘Temptation’, and a breeding line) were glasshouse-grown in both fall and spring, harvested at abscission (full-slip), and compared after storage for 3–24 days in air at 5 or 10 °C. Fruit maturity (full-slip) was between 31 and 38 days after anthesis, with maturation dependent on genotype. Days to maturity were slightly longer in the fall than in the spring. Fruit size (number of fruit per standard commercial shipping box) was between four and six fruit per box. ‘Orange Dew’ consistently had the smallest fruit (six per box), and the breeding line had the largest (four per box). ‘Orange Delight’ and ‘Orange Dew’ had the fewest whole-fruit disorders and the highest percentage of marketable fruit at harvest and following 24 days of storage at 5 or 10 °C. ‘Orange Delight’, ‘Orange Dew’, and the breeding line consistently had a more yellow peel, whereas ‘Honey Gold’ and ‘Temptation’ fruit peels had a more greenish hue. Whole-fruit firmness was 10–25 N among the cultivars and 24–35 N for the breeding line. Internal-fruit disorders, percentage marketability, and mesocarp (pulp) firmness reflected each genotype's whole-fruit attributes. ‘Orange Delight’ and ‘Orange Dew’ fruit consistently had among the highest soluble solids concentration and relative sweetness ratings, and their pulp had a more intense orange hue and lower lightness than those of the other genotypes. After 24 days of storage, ‘Orange Delight’ and ‘Orange Dew’ maintained their higher sweetness and more orange hue in both spring and fall harvests; however, depending on harvest, they were not always significantly sweeter or more orange-hued than some of the other genotypes. Our results indicate that orange-fleshed honey dew fruit are a promising new melon type suitable as a substitute for orange-fleshed netted muskmelon fruit not only for food-safety issues but also for overall marketable quality.