Australian Stonefruit Grower Magazine Issue 4 April 2017 | Page 26

Research
firmness in plums that were treated with SmartFresh then
kept at 20°C. After two weeks most treated fruit were still
edible, whereas untreated plums were completely soft.
However, it is really during long-term storage – such as
for export – that 1-MCP treatment is most likely to prove
worthwhile. A 2013 export trial of plums from Western
Australia tested the effect of SmartFresh treatment on a
number of varieties. The treatment reduced softening and
skin colour changes (for some varieties) and maintained
internal quality.
In this trial, SmartFresh had little effect on the firmness
of Angeleno plums, which is unsurprising given that it is
Effect of 1-MCP treatment on white nectarines cold stored
for 0, 2 or 4 weeks then placed at 20 o C. Data derived from
Pantelidis and Vasilakakis, 2010.
a “suppressed climacteric” type. However, the treatment
virtually eliminated internal breakdown, which affected
20–30% of the untreated fruit. This result was likely due to
1-MCP treatment reducing cold damage.
While all plums are somewhat chilling sensitive, there is
a strong connection between whether a plum goes through
a strong climacteric during ripening and its sensitivity to
chilling injury. Argentinian research has demonstrated that
1-MCP treatment not only delayed ripening after storage,
but also greatly reduced chilling damage in strongly
climacteric plums. In this trial Angeleno plums did not
benefit from 1-MCP, as no chilling injury occurred 1 .
Peaches and nectarines
Treating with 1-MCP can reduce ethylene production in
Effect of 1-MCP treatment on firmness of peaches
harvested at different stages of maturity then placed at
20°C. Data derived from Parker and Blankenship, 2012.
Nectarines may be somewhat more responsive, although
climacteric peaches and nectarines (although not by as again effects vary by cultivar and tend to be short-lived.
much as for plums) and slow the rate of softening during Research at Curtin University in WA found that Artic
ripening. Effects tend to depend on concentration and Pride nectarines treated with 1-MCP stayed slightly firmer
exposure time, with effective concentrations ranging from (approx. 3kgf ) than untreated fruit (approx. 2kgf ) for 6 days
0.4 μl.L-1 to 5 μl.L-1 in different studies . at 20°C 4 .
2
However, responses of peaches to 1-MCP vary by
Similar results have been reported for white fleshed
cultivar and maturity at harvest and tend to be fairly Caldesi 5 and yellow-fleshed Fantasia 6 nectarines. Fruit that
transitory. Even in responsive varieties, the effects on were treated with 1-MCP before 2 weeks storage at 0°C
peaches may be lost within 5 days at 20°C . were firmer than untreated fruit on removal and remained
3
Candan AP, Graell J, Larrigaudiere C. 2011. Postharvest quality and chilling injury of plums: benefits of 1-methylcyclopropene. Spanish J. Ag. Res. 9:554-564.
Watkins CB. 2008. Overview of 1-methylcyclopropene trials and uses for edible horticultural crops. HortSci. 43:86-94.
3 
Parker ML, Blankenship SM. 2012. Postharvest response of peach and nectarine cultivars to 1-methylcyclopropene treatment. ActaHort. 962:549-556.
4 
Ullah S. et al. 2016. Postharvest application of 1-MCP and ethylene influences fruit softening and quality of Arctic Pride nectarines at ambient conditions. Aust. J. Crop Sci. 10:1257-1265.
5 
Pantelidis G and Vasilakakis M. 2010. Effect of 1-methylcyclopropene on quality attributes of Caldesi 2000 white-fleshed nectarine during cold storage. ActaHort. 884:605-610.
6 
DeEll JR, Murr DP, Ehsani-Moghaddam B. 2008. 1-methylcyclopropene treatment modifies postharvest behavior of Fantasia nectarines. Can. J. Plant Sci. 88:753-758.
7 
G Lurie S and Weksler A. 2005. Effects of 1-methylcyclopropene on stone fruits. ActaHort. 682:85-90.
8 
Minas I et al. 2013. Postharvest handling of plums (Prunus salicina) at 10°C to save energy and preserve fruit quality using an innovative application system of 1-MCP. Postharvest Biol. Technol. 76:1-9.
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Australian Stonefruit Grower | April 2017
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