Abstract:

Aiming at the problems of easy senescence, water loss and quality decline of ‘Yunning No. 1’ lemon after harvest, in order to clarify the suitable preservation scheme of fruits with different maturity, this study investigates the effect of BC coating on the storage quality of lemon fruits at different maturity stages, and provides a theoretical foundation and practical methods for preserving lemons. Using ‘Yunning No. 1’ lemons at 80% maturity (DL) and 50% maturity (XL) as materials, fruits with uniform size and healthy surfaces were selected, BC coating was applied to lemons at different stages of ripeness, and samples were taken every 20 days. Measurements were taken for fruit weight loss rate, fruit weight, peel thickness, longitudinal diameter, transverse diameter, color difference, total soluble solids (TSS), and titratable acid (TA).The results indicated that for the same storage period, the L*, a*, and b* values of 80% maturity were significantly higher than those of 50% maturity, the uncoated 50% maturity (XC) exhibited wrinkled and hardened peel at 60 days, with severe wrinkling observed at 80 days; the XL treatment group significantly delayed the yellowing and wrinkling of lemon peel during storage, color change began on the 80 days of storage without any wrinkling observed. In the DC treatment group, fruit peel yellowed at the 20 days of storage and showed slight wrinkling at the 60 days, in the DL treatment group, fruit yellowed at the 40 days of storage, with the peel remaining glossy and free of wrinkling throughout the storage period. At 100 days of storage, the fruit weight loss rates for the XL and DL treatment groups were 13.12% and 17.35%, respectively, both lower than those of the XC and DC treatment groups; the soluble solids content of the fruit fluctuated between higher and lower levels, after 80 days of storage, the titratable acid content of the XC and XL treatments was significantly higher than that of the DC and DL treatments, reaching 9.61% and 9.34%, respectively, after 100 days of storage. During storage, the TSS/TA showed a decreasing trend across all four treatment groups. Therefore, in actual production, lemon fruits can be harvested when they reach 80% maturity and treated with a BC coating agent to extend their storage life and maintain good quality.

Key words: BC coating, Yunning No.1, storage, different degrees of maturity, quality changes