Effect of Calcium Spraying Time on Postharvest Quality of  Elberta Peach Cultivar

At the time of harvest and postharvest, some parameters like tissue firmness, tissue color and fresh weight are altered which affect the visual quality of fruit as well as intensifying the physiological disorders. This study was performed with the aim of determining the effect of calcium spraying time and sources on some quantitative, qualitative and postharvest characteristics of ‘Elberta’ peach cultivar. In this experiment, CaCl2 (0.5 and 1%),Ca(NO3 2 (0.5 and 1%) and Calcium Chelate (0.1 and 0.2%) were sprayed once, 50 days after full bloom (pit hardening stage) and three times spraying starting at 50 days after full bloom with two-week intervals. Experiment was performed as randomized completely block design with 11 treatments and five replications. After harvest, peach fruits were stored at 4ºC and 90±2% relative humidity. The results showed that both concentrations of CaCl2 (0.5 and 1%) as three times spraying increased the fruit firmness (at harvest and postharvest stages) and reduced the tissue browning (25%) and water loss (11%) in comparison to the control after two weeks of cold storage. It is concluded that repeated calcium spraying, may result in improving the growth parameters as well as the postharvest characteristics of peach fruit.