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Abstract
The effect of postharvest fumigation and controlled atmosphere (CA) storage on fruit quality of two nectarine (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch var. nectarina (Ait.) Maxim.) cultivars was investigated. ‘Redgold’ and ‘Fantasia’ nectarines were either not fumigated or fumigated with 64 g/m3 methyl bromide for 2 h at 12°C, and then cool-stored for up to 6 weeks in air or CA. The main effects of CA storage on non-fumigated ‘Redgold’ and ‘Fantasia’ nectarines were to retard softening and loss of green colour, to maintain soluble solids concentration (SSC), and to delay onset of storage disorders such as mealiness and internal breakdown. Fumigation retarded fruit softening, lowered SSC, and increased the severity of mealiness and internal breakdown in nectarines stored for more than 3 weeks. It did not significantly affect flesh colour development CA storage did not alleviate the effect of fumigation on SSC or the severity of internal disorders. Fumigated ‘Redgold’ nectarines, stored in either air or CA, showed signs of skin damage after 2 weeks of storage; damage increased in severity with length of time in storage. With ‘Fantasia’ nectarines, skin damage was found only in fruit that had been forced-air-cooled and CA-stored immediately after fumigation.