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`D'Anjou' pears (Pyrus communis, L.) growing in 3 locations with the elevation at 150 meters, 380 meters, and 610 meters respectively in Hood River valley, Oregon were harvested at the commercial maturity with the flesh firmness of 62.3 Newton (±2.2 N) and stored in air at -1°C. Regardless of different growing elevations, the incidence of superficial scald became noticeable after 2.5 months of storage and became substantial after 3 months. The rate of scald development was higher on the fruit from 150 meters elevation than those from higher elevations. Alpha-farnesene and conjugated trienes in the peel tissue accumulated at faster and higher rates in the fruit from 380 meters and 610 meters elevations than those from 150 meter elevation. The threshold level of conjugated trienes which causes superficial scald disorder was different from the fruit grown at different elevations.
`D'Anjou' pears (Pyrus communis L.) harvested at commercial maturity and stored in air at 30 °F (-1 °C) for up to 7 weeks were still incapable of ripening normally at 68 °F (20 °C) for 7 days. `D'Anjou' fruit at this stage were termed as under-chilled fruit. Ziploc bags [1-gal (3.8-L)] perforated with a number of small holes [1/8 inches (0.32 cm) in diameter] were used to pack five `d'Anjou' pears and five `Bartlett' pears [a total net weight of 5 ± 0.2 lb (2.3 ± 0.1 kg)]. The mixed fruit packed in the same bags were placed into a room at 68 °F. When under-chilled `d'Anjou' fruit packed with `Bartlett' fruit in the bags perforated with 6, 8, or 10 holes, `Bartlett' fruit became fully ripe after 5 days while `d'Anjou' fruit were capable of ripening normally after 7 days at 68 °F. Ripened fruit of both pear cultivars developed high dessert quality. The concentration of ethylene in these bags accumulated to ≈50 ppm (mg·L-1) on day 4 while CO2 concentration did not increase to above 3% and O2 concentration maintained at 18%. Ethylene generated naturally by `Bartlett' pears during ripening at 68 °F and accumulated in the bag perforated with 6 to 10 holes was sufficient to induce the normal ripening activities of under-chilled `d'Anjou' pears. This packaging technology may be used to promote early marketing for both pear cultivars.
`Columbia' and `Gebhard' strains of red `d'Anjou' pears (Pyrus Communis L.) harvested at similar maturity exhibited different ripening behavior after monthly removal from 1C storage in air. `Columbia' fruit produced ethylene at higher rates than `Gebhard' fruit during 15 days of ripening at 20C after each corresponding storage interval, `Gebhard' fruit required a longer period of chilling than `Columbia' fruit to generate noticeable rates of ethylene during ripening. The unripened fruit of both strains contained similar amounts of ACC at each corresponding storage interval. At each corresponding ripened state, ACC content in `Columbia' fruit increased 2 to 3-fold, while that in `Gebhard' fruit changed very little. After sufficient chilling, `Columbia' fruit were capable of softening to proper ripeness, and they developed buttery and juicy texture as indicated by the apparent reduction of extractable juice (EJ) content. `Gebhard' fruit also softened but to a lesser extent than `Columbia' fruit. Ripened `Gebhard' fruit had only slightly lower levels of EJ than unripened fruit and did not develop a buttery and juicy texture after any storage intervals. Titratable acidity (TA) in fruit of both strains varied between for the 1988 and 1989 seasons but decreased significantly during storage in both years. Soluble solids concentrations (SSC) in both strains also varied seasonally but did not change during storage or ripening. Chemical name used: 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC).
We have established that `d'Anjou' pears (Pyrus communis) are properly ripened for fresh-cut use when flesh firmness (FF) is between 5 lb (2.3 kg) and 7 lb (3.2 kg). In this study, the fruit was ripened in air enriched with 100 ppm (mL·L-1) ethylene at 68 °F (20.0 °C). Afterward, we investigated three slicing methods, each employing a fruit sectionizer for dividing individual pears into eight wedges. The easiest and most convenient cutting procedure involved pouring an antibrowning agent onto the incision, but without allowing the fruit to directly contact the air. We evaluated various combinations of L-ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and potassium chloride (KCl) for their ability to prevent any discoloration while also not affecting taste or injuring the cut surface. The most suitable antibrowning solution contained 10% L-ascorbic acid and 2% KCl (pH 2.3). A dipping time of 30 s was sufficient for maintaining the wedges with little discoloration over a 14-d period, at either 30 or 35 °F (-1.1 or 1.7 °C). Here, we also present a prototype design for a 1.6-pt (0.76-L) transparent plastic container with eight compartments for holding wedges sliced with a commercially available sectionizer.
`Bartlett' pears (Pyrus communis L.) were harvested at commercial maturity (average flesh firmness of 18 lb), stored at 30F for 0, 2, or 4 weeks, and then placed into a ripening room at 68F with or without ethylene to evaluate ripening activities. Pears that were stored in air at 30F for <4 weeks did not ripen after 7 days at 68F in an ethylene-free (no-ethylene) room. These pears ripened normally and uniformly after 7 days at 68F in a room enriched with 100 ppm ethylene (yes-ethylene). `Bartlett' pears that were stored in air at 30F for 4 weeks ripened normally after 5 days at 68F in the yes-ethylene room or 6 days at 68F in the no-ethylene room. The amount of cans produced per ton of fresh processed pears can be maximized most economically by exposing freshly harvested `Bartlett' pears to 100 ppm ethylene at 68F for 7 days before canning.
A proportion of `d'Anjou' pear fruit (Pyrus communis L.) developed a disorder, “black speck” or “skin speckling”, after prolonged controlled atmosphere (CA) storage (1% O2, - 0.5 C). A comparative study of biochemical components revealed that there was no significant difference in succinic, citric, fumaric, and pyruvic acids between the speckled' and normal skin tissues. The content of malic acid in the affected tissue was almost three times lower than that in the normal tissue. The specific activity of NADP-malic enzyme (EC 1.1.1.40) in the affected tissue was also lower, but the total activities were similar. The affected tissue contained higher percentages of dry matter and soluble proteins than the normal tissue. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of proteins showed that two groups of novel polypeptides appeared only in the affected skin tissue. This study indicated that a certain proportion of `d'Anjou' pear fruit might have been exposed to unfavorable preharvest environmental stresses, and, therefore, could no longer tolerate the subsequent semi-anaerobic and chilling stresses during prolonged CA storage.