Effects of Preharvest Foliar Calcium Applications on the Storage Quality of '0900 Ziraat' Sweet Cherry Cultivar

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate effects of foliar calcium application on storage of sweet cherry. Different concentrations of CaCl2 (2.4, 3.2, and 4.0 g/l) and Ca(NO3)(2) (3.4, 4.6, and 5.8 g/l) were applied six times by foliar spraying on leaves and fruits of the sweet cherry variety '0900 Ziraat'. Harvested fruits were packaged in 500 g plastic boxes and stored for four weeks at 0 C-0 and 90-95 % relative humidity. During the experiment, flesh firmness, titratable acidity value (TA), pH, total soluble solids content (SSC) ratio, and weight losses were weekly assessed. The results indicated that there were positive effects of foliar calcium applications on fruit quality coupled with improved firmness, and enhancement of TA, an additional advantage for consumer acceptability. It was found that lower concentrations of both calcium treatments were not affective. On the other hand, 3.2 g/l calcium chloride and 4.6 g/l calcium nitrate were advised. Higher concentrations (4.0 g/l calcium chloride and 5.8 g/l calcium nitrate) caused a decrease in fruit quality through deformations on the fruit surfaces, especially after the third week of storage.