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- Author or Editor: K.A. Harrison x
- HortTechnology x
HarvestWatch is a new chlorophyll fluorescence (F)-based technology that identifies the low-oxygen threshold for apple (Malus × domestica) fruit in dynamic low-O controlled atmosphere (DLOCA) storage environments [e.g., <1% oxygen (O2)]. Immediately following harvest, `Cortland', `Delicious', `Golden Delicious', `Honeycrisp', `Jonagold' and `McIntosh' fruit were cooled and loaded into 0.34 m3 (12.0 ft3) storage cabinets. A static controlled atmosphere (CA) regime of 1.5% O2, 1.5% carbon dioxide (CO2) and 3 °C (37.4 °F) [0 °C (32.0 °F) for `Delicious' and `Golden Delicious'] was established for the control fruit, while the low-O2 threshold was identified by a spike in the fluorescence parameter, Fα, as the O2 levels in the DLOCA cabinets were lowered below 1%. The DLOCA storages were then maintained at O2 levels of 0.1% to 0.2% above the threshold value for each cultivar, which returned Fα to prethreshold signatures. Quality measurements following 5 to 9 months of storage and a 7-day shelf life of 20 °C (68.0 °F), showed that the HarvestWatch fruit were generally firmer, had no incidence of superficial scald in `Cortland' and `Delicious' apples, and did not accumulate fermentative volatile compounds. The HarvestWatch system permits rapid, real-time measurements of the status of stored apple fruit in ultra low-O2 environments without the inconvenience of breaking the room's atmosphere. Our results indicate that HarvestWatch facilitates what may be the highest possible level of fruit quality retention in long-term, low-O2 apple storage without the use of scald-controlling or other chemicals before storage.
No reduction in yield and quality of pecan nuts or leaf mineral nutrient concentration occurred when 100 lb/acre of N was applied through a drip-irrigation system compared with 200 lb/acre applied either all broadcast or half broadcast and half fertigated. Yield of `Stuart', percentage kernel of `Schley', and nut size of both cultivars were increased by irrigation or irrigation and fertigation. The 100 lb/acre N-all-fertigated treatment resulted in less soil pH reduction and less loss of K, Ca, and Mg from soil underneath the tree canopy than broadcast treatments. No evidence of excessive soil pH reduction in the wetted zone of fertigated trees was noticed. Calcium and Mg were higher within than outside the wetted zone.