Response of fruits of two pomegranate cultivars to dipping with Chitosan during cold storage

Abstract

The study was carried out in one of the cold stores in Diyala Governorate; the fruits of two cultivars of pomegranate, Salimi and Shami, were collected from the orchards of Diyala Governorate, Khirnabat village, from trees aged 5-6 years. The storage treatments were as follows: two cultivars of pomegranate, Salimi sour and Shami, the fruits were dipped in Chitosan at a concentration of 2% for 5 minutes, in addition to the control treatment (dipping in distilled water only). The fruits were stored at a temperature of 8 ± 1 ° and relative humidity of 85-90% for three months, and measurements were taken at intervals (beginning of storage after 45 days of storage, and after 90 days of storage). The results were analyzed with a factorial experiment with CRD design, and the averages were compared with the LSD test with a probability level of 0.05. The cultivar was significantly superior in the percentage of total soluble solids) 14.10(, anthocyanin pigment)3.005( and total soluble solids / total acidity (TSS/TA)( 19.59) compared with Shami cultivar, while Shami cultivar was significantly superior in total acidity(1.232 ) and vitamin C )26.80(content over Salimi cultivar, the treated fruits with Chitosan at a concentration of 2% gave a clear superiority in the amount of total acidity,( 1.232) the amount of vitamin C(26.80) and the amount of anthocyanin pigment in the fruits compared with the control treatment. At the same time, there was no significant effect of Chitosan on total soluble solids (TSS)( 13.77 ) and TSS/TA(19.26 ). The results also showed that the amount of TSS, the total acidity and the juice content of vitamin C was significantly decreased with the continuation of storage compared with the beginning of storage at the time when the accumulation of anthocyanin(2.209 ) pigment and TSS/TA(19.53) was increased, there was an apparent effect of the interaction between treatments on the storage characteristics of pomegranate fruits. Keywords: Pomegranate, Chitosan, Fruit and Storage