The influence of harvesting time and geographical location on susceptibility to physiological peel disorders associated with four Florida grapefruit cultivars

Abstract

SummaryMajor cultivars of grapefruit (‘Flame’, ‘Ruby Red’, ‘Rio Red’ and ‘Marsh’) were harvested at 4–6 week intervals from Central Florida and the Indian River area on the Eastern Coast of Florida, from September through June 2001–2002 and 2002–2003. Generally, post-harvest pitting (PP) was less severe if fruit were harvested in February compared to fruit harvested after March. Chilling injury (CI) was high from October to December (early season), low from January to March (mid-season) and increased in all cultivars if fruit were harvested between April and June (late season). Higher PP and CI were found consistently in white ‘Marsh’ grapefruit than in coloured grapefruit cultivars; however, there was little difference in the incidence of CI and PP among three coloured cultivars. White grapefruit harvested from Central Florida developed more severe CI and PP compared to those from the Indian River area. These results are demonstrated in the factorial analyses of harvest month and cultivar or location over the 2 years of study. For commercial post-harvest management, the susceptibility of various cultivars to the development of peel disorder should be considered in association with the maturity and location of the harvested fruit.