Vegetos

Abstract

Plum is a perishable fruit and its ripening coincides with the hot and dry summer months under north Indian conditions. It has very short storage life at ambient temperature and high post-harvest losses. Keeping in view, an experiment was planned to extend the post-harvest life of plum fruits with boric acid application under cold storage conditions. Physiologically mature and uniform fruits of plum cv. Satluj Purple were dipped in different solution concentrations of boric acid (1.0, 2.0 and 3.0%) as well as distilled water (control) for 5 minutes. Treated fruits were air dried in shade and packed in corrugated fiber boxes with paper lining before storage at 0–1°C and 90–95% RH for 35 days. Results revealed that fruits treated with boric acid 3.0% retained the acceptable quality by reducing physiological loss in weight, spoilage, pectin methyl esterase activity and maintaining the fruit firmness, sensory quality, total soluble solids, titrable acidity, total sugars, reducing sugars and non-reducing sugars up to 28 days of storage.