The purpose of the research is the scientific substantiation of the technological aspects of post-harvest treatment with an ethylene inhibitor of apple and pear fruits for the preservation of commercial and consumer properties and the continuation of cold storage.
The object of research is the processes of changes in the quality of apples and pears after post-harvest treatment with an ethylene inhibitor during cold storage and post-cold exposure at a temperature of 18...20 °C, depending on the growing region, the level of garden intensity (rootstock), the harvesting period (the degree of removal ripeness), cooling regime and 1-MCP concentration.
The subject of the research is the cold storage of apples of winter varieties and pears of early and late autumn ripening with the use of post-harvest treatment with the ethylene inhibitor 1-MCP and the cooling regime.
Research methods: general scientific - hypothesis, analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, abstraction and concretization, system analysis and generalization; special - laboratory (activity of ethylene synthesis by fruits, intensity of respiration and heat release, natural losses, marketable properties, pulp density, main skin color, components of the chemical composition, juice yield), mathematical and statistical (relationships between indicators and the influence of factors on preservation - dispersion, regression, correlation analyses), organoleptic (tasting evaluation), comparative-calculation (economic efficiency of storage with post-harvest treatment with an ethylene inhibitor).
The scientific novelty of the obtained results lies in the solution of a scientific and practical problem and the identification of patterns of preservation of marketable and consumer properties of the fruits of grain crops depending on the region of cultivation, type of garden, harvesting period, mode of cooling and post-harvest treatment with an ethylene inhibitor.
– theoretical provisions and methodological base of research on post-harvest treatment of apple and pear fruits with an ethylene inhibitor were formed, depending on the region of cultivation, type of garden (rootstock), harvesting period (degree of picking ripeness) and cooling mode;
– the effective use of differentiated doses of ethylene inhibitor was established and proposed to preserve the marketability and consumption properties of fruits;
– rational technological parameters and modes of post-harvest cooling of apples are determined to preserve the marketable and consumer properties of the products;
– the impact of 24-hour post-harvest cooling of pear fruits on physiological processes, changes in chemical composition, marketable and consumer properties of products during storage and sale (post-refrigeration exposure) was investigated;
– the application of the cooling regime and doses of the ethylene inhibitor to achieve high indicators of the tasting evaluation of apple and pear fruits after storage is scientifically justified;
– the index of inhibition of ethylene synthesis by fruits was calculated, scientifically substantiated and proposed for the treatment of apples and pears with differentiated doses of the ethylene inhibitor;
– the economic expediency of using different doses of ethylene inhibitor for post-harvest processing of the fruits of grain crops is substantiated.
Developed and recommended technological instructions for storing late-ripening apples for different regions of cultivation from intensive (rootstock M.9) and traditional (MM.106) plantings, different harvesting dates (beginning and full picking ripeness) with post-harvest treatment with an ethylene inhibitor, as well as technological instructions for storing late-autumn pears reaching different harvest times (beginning and full picking ripeness) under post-harvest cooling and treatment with an ethylene inhibitor (production test).
The methodology "Determination of ethylene activity of fruits" has been improved.
Differentiated doses of ethylene inhibitor are proposed for post-harvest processing of fruits: the organoleptic properties of Renet Simyrenko apples can be improved by treatment with SmartFreshSM, v. r.p. (d.r. – 1-methylcyclopropn, 3.3%) at a dose of 0.051 g/m3, to test in production the post-harvest treatment of pears of the Yanis variety at a dose of 0.034 g/m3 (SmartFresh preparation) with a 24-hour cooling delay.
