Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1
M.Sc. Student, Department of Horticultural Sciences, College of Agriculture, Shahid Bahonar University, Kerman, Iran.
2
Associate Professor, Department of Horticultural Sciences, College of Agriculture, Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Iran.
10.30466/rip.2023.121283
Abstract
This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of different humic acid concentrations on postharvest quality maintenance of the ‘Paros’ strawberry cultivar under greenhouse conditions in Jiroft, Iran. The experiment was arranged as a completely randomized design with four treatments of humic acid (0, 12.5, 25, and 50 mg/L) applied as foliar sprays at the beginning of flowering, each with four replications. To assess postharvest quality, fruits were stored at 1 °C and 90 ± 5% relative humidity for 20 days. During storage, fruit firmness, total soluble solids (TSS), titratable acidity (TA), decay percentage, and weight loss were measured. The results indicated that the 50 mg/L humic acid treatment had the greatest effect in maintaining fruit firmness, TSS, and TA, while also exhibiting the lowest weight loss, decay percentage, and acidity during storage. Although all humic acid treatments significantly differed from the control, the 50 mg/L concentration proved to be the most effective in extending the shelf life and preserving the quality of strawberry fruits.
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