NE1336: Improving Quality and Reducing Losses in Specialty Fruit Crops through Storage Technologies

(Multistate Research Project)

Status: Inactive/Terminating

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SAES-422 Reports

Annual/Termination Reports:

[11/11/1111] [06/14/2016] [07/18/2017] [01/18/2018] [09/12/2018]

Date of Annual Report: 11/11/1111

Report Information

Annual Meeting Dates: 06/02/2014 - 06/03/2014
Period the Report Covers: 11/11/1111 - 11/11/1111

Participants

Brief Summary of Minutes

Accomplishments

Publications

Impact Statements

Date of Annual Report: 06/14/2016

Report Information

Annual Meeting Dates: 08/02/2015 - 08/03/2015
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2014 - 09/30/2015

Participants

Randy Beaudry, Michigan State University

Justine Beaulieu, University of Maryland

Jeff Brecht, University of Florida

Susan Brown, Cornell University, Geneva

Sastry Jayanty, Colorado State University

Elizabeth Mitcham, University of California, Davis

Jackie Nock, Cornell University, Ithaca

Penny Perkins-Veazie, North Carolina State University

Chris Walsh, University of Maryland

Yan Wang, Oregon State University, Mid-Columbia Center

Chris Watkins, Cornell University, Ithaca

Jennifer D’Ell, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food, Simcoe, Ontario

Charles Forney, Agriculture Canada, Nova Scotia

Jun Song, Agriculture Canada, Nova Scotia.

Dave Rudell USDA-ARS, USDA-ARS Wenatchee, Washington

Peter Toivonen, Ag Canada, Summerland, British Columbia

Tianbo Yang, USDA-ARS Beltsville, Maryland

Brief Summary of Minutes

Minutes Attachment:

NE-1336_Meeting_minutes_2015_NOLA.docx

Accomplishments

SHORT-TERM OUTCOMES Short-term outcomes for postharvest research are both fundamental and applied. Fundamental outcomes include the sharing of scientific findings and the development of collaborative projects. Applied outcomes typically involve adoption of technologies or practices by industries involved in perishables storage. Fundamental outcomes include an assessment of mass spectrometry as a tool to identify the proteins and metabolites produced by perishables to describe their responses to storage environments or to describe the impact due to germplasm for a number of commodities. Quantifications of secondary metabolites related to nutrition quality will also provide a resource for nutritionists and marketers. Applied outcomes include the adoption of techniques for minimizing injury due to low temperatures and stressful storage atmospheres on pome and stone fruit. Of particular note, the North American apple storage industry has adopted recommendations by members of the NE1336 to use delay of cooling (prestorage conditioning) to prevent low temperature injury of Honeycrisp apples. In addition, delay of cooling and DPA use has also been adopted for prevention of injury from low O2 and elevated CO2 atmospheres. Information on the efficacy and applicability of the DA meter for estimating fruit chlorophyll has been used in the cautious adoption of that technology in North American apple industries. Information on factors associated with the development of internal browning of Gala and other apple varieties susceptible to internal browning disorders has been shared with North American apple industries, and storage operators are modifying their storage regimens where feasible. Information on the efficacy of dynamic controlled atmosphere storage (DCA) as a non-chemical means of preventing storage scald was generated and is being used to make recommendations useful to the North American apple industries. Metabolite levels of harvested apples are being tracked and information given to storage operators in Washington orchards to support their storage decisions. Information on environmental factors affecting pear scald is being used to make storage decisions in the Oregon pear industry. Recommendations on the use of 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP), and ethylene action inhibitor have been used to make use recommendations for the US and Canadian apple industries and the California pear industry. Similar information is being developed for the Florida avocado and mango industries. Oxalic acid applied to mango fruit postharvest was discovered to reduce incidence and severity of chilling injury symptoms, which was associated with enhancement of membrane integrity and the fruit antioxidant system and energy cycle. 1-MCP was found to interact negatively with quarantine hot water treatment (QHWT) for mango, while ripening was delayed in fruit treated with 1-MCP without QHWT without injury. Thus, 1-MCP may be more useful for mango markets that do not require mandatory QHWT.   OUTPUTS Tangible outputs in the form of peer-reviewed publications are listed under 'Publications'. Each of the participants in the NE1336 routinely generate presentations, factsheets, and reports to their respective industries. Extension publications include the Maine Apple Pest Report, NY Fruit Quarterly. In addition, states such as CA, ME, MI, NY and WA have extensive formal industry venues for presentation of results to growers. These include Storage workshops in MI and NY, the New England Vegetable and Fruit Growers Conference and Trade Show, The NY Fruit and Vegetable Expo, Carolinas Fruit and Vegetable Expos, the NC Winter vegetable meeting, the SE Fruit and Vegetable Expo, Annual Hood River Winter Horticultural Meeting, Pear Packers Pre-harvest meeting, Minnesota Apple Growers Association, and Great Lakes Horticulture meeting. UC Davis runs a number of specific outreach courses, e.g. Fruit Ripening and Retail Handling Workshop, each year.   ACTIVITIES Objective 1. Optimize storage regimes for existing apple, pear, plum, cherry and berry cultivars, with emphasis on new cultivars arising from breeding programs in NY, BC, ON, MI, MN and WA. Peter Toivonen (BC) opened this discussion with results from his studies of apple maturity in new apple cultivars and numbered selections. Maturity in the new cultivars such as Ambrosia and breeding selections has been difficult to monitor as starch patterns have not been consistent from year to year, due to erratic weather. Ground color using the DA meter appeared more stable than starch but is just one tool available. To get a better understanding of maturity, they use three major maturity criteria in their analyses at Summerland. Internal ethylene is not always closely linked to the other maturity indices in some of these new selections.   Lower-ethylene apples with non-traditional maturation patterns appear to have been selected recently by fruit breeders. As considerable interest in Ambrosia and selections from the SPA program, there was much discussion of the maturity studies in BC. Toivonen also reported on his studies with the Delta A (DA) meter, showing that measurements differed depending on the light environment in the tree. A reading on the back (unexposed) side of the fruit was the most reliable in his studies. Temperatures also affected the DA readings; this was particularly affected by warm night temperatures. The consensus was that the DA meter measures the chronological age of the peel, but variation in chlorophyll can also occur in the peel. Watkins (NY) said it was helpful but not absolute for each fruit. When the meter reads zero, that certainly measured a senescent fruit. On the other hand, it has not been so easy to demonstrate the Nova Scotia maturity window using the meter. Peter Toivonen, (BC) agreed with the group in that it puts an additional maturity tool in the postharvest toolbox. Chris Watkins (NY) discussed similar issues encountered when judging harvest maturity of NY 2 apples. He found a three to four week period where little changes in maturity indices are seen although major changes in storage life occur in this time period. Sweet cherry work on new cultivars in BC was also reported.   A marked difference between 3 C and 0.5 C pre-cooling on respiration rate and likely storage life was shown, which were based on fruit respiration. In the resulting discussion, it was mentioned that a flavor note in sweet cherries is malic acid, not benzaldehyde which is a note in tart cherry. Chris Walsh (MD) reported briefly on internal breakdown in Olympic Asian pear which is widely recommended due to its fire blight tolerance. Internal breakdown has been particularly troublesome for the past two seasons in the mid-Atlantic region, possibly caused by hot, dry summer weather.   Peter Toivonen (BC) mentioned that the symptoms in Olympic pear resembled those he had seen in Braeburn apples with internal breakdown. Randy Beaudry (MI) discussed studies on HoneyCrisp apples, where he used a temperature-time matrix to study carbon dioxide injury. The only preventative measure appeared to be the use of diphenylamine (DPA), which protected fruits at 1000 ppm. Fermentation volatiles were also measured in this study, and the greater the fruit damage, the greater the level of these volatiles measured. Beaudry concluded that fermentation products were a byproduct of the damage, rather than an inducer of the damage. Discussion following this, centered on DPA usage and the potential problems in its long term release from bins in the packinghouse.   Chris Watkins (NY) continued discussion on DPA. He believes it is likely to lose its EPA registration soon. Delayed controlled atmosphere (CA) storage appeared to be increasingly valuable and needs further investigation, along with the application of 1-MCP to prevent scald. While peel greasiness was increased by delayed storage, delayed CA appears to have positive effects and appears to be a valuable antidote to CO2 injury. If growers cannot use DPA, delayed storage appears to be their second-best strategy.   When conducting New York trials, senescent breakdown and bitter pit, were not affected by delayed CA treatment. Susan Brown (NY) noted that similar postharvest problems have also been found in fruit from Honeycrisp seedling trees. Stem end browning in Gala was also mentioned. While some areas have not reported it, Chris Watkins (NY) mentioned that it has been seen in apples grown in New York, Ontario and Brazil. One hypotheses is that while ethylene synthesis and action may be affecting some aspects of maturation, but other non-ethylene related changes continue to occur. Regal Gala (Fulton) is more mature and cracks easier than other selections. As such it appears to also be more susceptible to internal browning. Gala problems were also discussed by David Rudell (WA) who mentioned issues with fruit packers in Washington State. Serious disorders were discussed, including Gala stem-end browning, diffuse flesh breakdown, and a ‘baked apple effect,’ likely caused by box liners. Dave Rudell also mentioned that Jim Mattheis (WA) has a HortScience paper in press which will discuss these postharvest problems in detail. Jennifer D’Ell (ONT) reported on her recent studies of mealiness in peach and nectarine fruit flesh. To deal with this, she studied a half-dozen cultivars to learn about cultivar differences but was surprised to find that mealiness came on within a week of storage from fruits in Ontario. Beth Mitcham (CA) and Toivonen (BC) recommended future trials with 1-MCP and then possibly holding them at room temperature. The Nova Scotia report was given by Cheryl Hampson and Charles Forney who are working with genetics, genomics and proteomics tools to study soft scald in Honeycrisp. Gene sequencing technique is being used to look at the markers. There is also a second population of Cheryl Hampson’s (Ambrosia x HoneyCrisp) under study. The breeding populations showed a variation in disorder incidence. At this point QTL regions on chromosomes 2 and 3 appear to be correlated with soft scald development. Beaudry (MI) suggested that the group needed to develop a project to find a genetic solution to the Honeycrisp disorder susceptibility. Charles Forney (NS) then discussed studies screening strawberry genotypes for phenolics and chemical profiling, and raspberry genotypes for their storageability. Raspberry storage treatments combined 12.5% carbon dioxisde and 7.5% oxygen. Physiological decay was reduced by high CO2, but there was also a loss of firmness. Ethanol production was evident in raspberries stored at 2 % oxygen. Yan Wang (OR) reported on a series of projects studying pear scald. Fruit at the lower elevations with accumulated cold units was more susceptible to scald.   Fruit with lower calcium content was also more susceptible to scald. Superficial scald and antioxidant capacity appear to be negatively correlated in this work.   Treatment with 1-MCP and long CA conditions reduced scald and low-oxygen injury. Treating with 100 ppb MCP in the laboratory worked perfectly, but in packing houses, fruits with the same treatment showed scald. Randy Beaudry (MI) mentioned the competition that occurs in a storage room between wood, cardboard and the fruit.   He suggested increasing the commercial level 1-MCP and that they should also quantify the actual level in the room. The suggestion was to use the highest treatment level possible that still allows pears to ripen. Gem pear was also studied in Oregon where harvest at ten to twelve pounds is used for commercial maturity. At that range of maturity, Gem fruit still retain a five-month storage life. Wang (OR) also reported that Gem fruit did have a problem with delicate skin.   Calcium uptake in cherry was studied using calcium hydroxide in Oregon. Randy Beaudry (MI) mentioned that the deliquescence point and humidity were determinants of calcium uptake. When the calcium deliquesces, it will be more likely to penetrate the fruit.   Higher concentration of calcium were correlated with less pitting after shipping. Modified atmosphere (MA) liners worked well to preserve cherry stem quality, but did not prevent pitting of the fruit.   Shippers in the Pacific Northwest are seeking four weeks to six weeks storage life, with five weeks required for shipping sweet cherries to Asian markets.   Ozone in packing houses and storability was also discussed in the Oregon report where Bosc pears are having decay problems in storage. Ozone monitors are used to keep the level at 800 parts per billion (ppb). Since ozone is surface active, it cannot control latent infections. Secondary effects of ozone were also discussed along with its suitability for other crops and in the postharvest handling of organic produce.   Objective 2. Investigate the effects of 1-MCP technology on fruit quality and storage disorders, and its interaction with cold storage and CA technology. Jennifer D’Ell (ONT) reported on a joint projects in Canada to control soft scald using many of the same treatments used for Honeycrisp on Ambrosia. They were using a short delayed cooling period and found that 1-MCP could have different effects on fruit from different orchards. MCP did affect firmness, but seemed to have far less impact on Ambrosia than Honeycrisp. The heat stresses faced of 2015 may have affected Ambrosia, which is planted in the hotter regions of the Okanogan Valley. Studies in California to optimize the effectiveness of 1-MCP on Bartlett pears were covered in depth. Beth Mitcham (CA) reported that the California pear industry wants the benefits of MCP but needs fruit to be able to ripen in seven days. She summarized data from a large study conducted by Andrew McNish, testing the effectiveness of this compound on sensory quality. Fruit were harvested during the picking season and then ripened. Sensory evaluations were conducted on fruit of the same firmness by 12 trained panelists.   Fruit treated with 1-MCP was viewed as far better by the panelists as the fruit appeared to have a more stable taste profile. Differences in sugar and acids were also measured between treatments. In addition, Beth summarized the work being conducted on methods of 1-MCP application and new commercial products that are being tested for the California pear industry. Jeff Brecht (FL) summarized work conducted in Steve Sargent’s lab on Florida avocados. Fruit can have a senescent peel blemish, and 1-MCP treatment reduces that peel damage. While this reduces the blemishing, it accentuates asynchronous softening, which in turn can be eliminated by a four-day ethylene treatment. Mango studies are also being conducted in Florida with 1-MCP and hot-water quarantine treatment. Surface blemishes were seen on 1-MCP treated fruit receiving the hot-water dip. This treatment does not appear to have a potential for hot-water treated mango.  Jackie Nock (NY) described Cornell studies testing dynamic chlorophyll fluorescence measurements in small CA chambers. By measuring fluorescence hourly it is possible to minimize oxygen levels until stress is seen, and then increase oxygen levels in the CA room slightly. She was able to take McIntosh to 1.1 % oxygen and Delicious to 0.6 % oxygen.   Two fruit per orchard, representative of the fruit held the storage room were monitored in the chlorophyll fluorescence measurements. Fruit stored in Dynamic CA (DCA) generally did better than CA-stored fruit held in a standard room. DCA stored fruit firmness was good when the storage was opened, but then decreased rapidly after seven days. Consequently, 1-MCP would also be required. Without 1-MCP the treatment would lead to attractive, but soft fruit. Dynamic CA appears to reduce a host of disorders, but vascular browning and flesh browning were not affected by this technology.  DCA also appeared to provide a non-chemical method for scald control. During the past year Hudson Valley apple fruit had visible peel disorders, while fruit from Western New York had internal problems. Cortland didn’t appear to respond to DCA. While this was not the purpose of the study, they noted striking differences among ethylene levels and maturity in commercial orchards. Watkins felt that DCA was less effective than the standard treatment of 1-MCP.   Flesh browning in Empire is frequently a problem and warmer storage temperatures, and 1-MCP appears to exacerbate this problem.   Late-harvested, over-mature fruit appears to be related to internal browning. Earlier harvest by Ontario growers appears to reduce the problem for them. Empire is particularly difficult to handle as one week’s delay in harvest date can make a major effect on internal browning in storage (Watkins, NY). Jennifer D’Ell (NS) reported on a series of trials with Harvista, including the use of surfactants, treatment dates and cultivar effects in the field. She also reported on the use of multiple applications of SmartFresh after harvest. It is sometimes necessary to treat more than once due to slow filling of storage rooms. A second 1-MCP treatment improved firmness retention in late-harvested Empire. Varying effects were seen on other disorders, but this did not affect internal browning. Studies are already underway to test whether carbon dioxide buildup during room loading may contribute to the problem. Not flushing the room, and not adding lime may allow injurious levels of carbon dioxide to accumulate.   Yun Wang (OR) reported that the standard material, ethoxyquin for scald control in pears is no longer an option, and 1-MCP was tested as a replacement. It has to be applied within three weeks of harvest to control scald. The goal is to extend pear storage life and reduce the percentage of fruit going to the cannery. Many growers are applying aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG) prior to harvest. Applying AVG one day prior to harvest showed the greatest effect in these trials, but the pre-harvest interval is currently seven days. Applications closer to harvest could reduce the rate of product required, reducing pesticide usage while simultaneously saving money for the growers.   Objective 3. Develop technologies and practices that optimize returns and promote increased consumption of health-beneficial fruits through preservation or improvement of fruit quality attributes. The discussion began with a presentation by Beth Mitcham (CA) reporting on calcium deficiency disorders of tomatoes and modifications of PME. This work has characterized PME binding sites for Ca in cell wall and reduced calcium levels in the apoplast. This binding begins in the columella and is correlated with blossom end rot.  Beth also reported on the stages of pear maturity, differentially expressed genes, responsiveness to ethylene, and their ability to ripen without additional ethylene.   This work noted changes in both auxin-related genes and ethylene-related genes.   They also reported on low temperature conditioning and gene expression as well as the effect of 1-MCP on transcription factors and cold-expressed genes. They found that firmness appeared to be well correlated with ACO and are now studying the role of non-ethylene responses, searching for a marker that would better predict responses to 1-MCP. Jeff Brecht (FL) presented work from Florida on a variety of studies carried out on a number of fruit and vegetable crops. He began by briefly summarizing the role of ethylene and programed cell death, which is an active process.  Brecht also discussed the current status of Florida’s low-chilling peach industry with a goal of producing tree ripe fruit. Additional attention to this 1,500 acre industry is likely as citrus producers turn to alternate crops. The market window for Florida peaches will be late-April to early-June, with the goal of marketing tree-ripe fruit. Jeff Brecht is working with Harry Klee and other plant breeders and molecular biologists with the goal of producing specialty crops such as peach, tomato, strawberry and basil that have excellent consumer acceptance. This led to a discussion of chilling injury and treatments used to reduce its effects. Hot water treatments can reduce chilling sensitivity, with the highest temperatures and shortest dwell time having the greatest effects. This is thought to lead to the up-regulation of carotenoids, phenolics and reactive oxygen species. Stimulation of the antioxidant system can be protective, even to chilling stress.   Treatments of 52C for five minutes, or 54C for 2.5 minutes have been effective on tomato, one day past green-mature. Tianbo Yang (MD-2) presented an overview of Wayne Jurick’s research studies of postharvest fungicide resistance and has found multiple resistance genes in Botrytis. In addition, Jurick has analysed the genome of Pennicilium expansum for potential mycotoxins production, finding a series of secondary metabolism clusters related to mycotoxin formation.   They also reported calmodulin gene expression in tomato, which is involved in fruit enlargement to ripening. The signal is up-regulated at the breaker stage. The relationship between calcium and ethylene is being studied, while searching for the up-regulated ripening related genes. Additional studies are comparing the relationship between the calmodulin gene and Botrytis infection. Penny Perkins-Veazie (NC) reported on chemical studies of secondary compounds in muscadine grapes. She reported on a series of studies of pigments in the peel and the need for heat-stability to improve the quality of muscadine grapes for fresh-market sales and quality wine production. Penny also reported on testing products for postharvest use by organic producer, focusing on essential oils as a replacement for producers who do not wish to use chlorine in the product wash water. They have been testing eugenol and iso-eugenol but have questions of cost effectiveness. In addition, these cannot be used on all crops as they hve been detrimental to lettuce. Thyme oil turns lettuce brown and unsaleable. Nova Scotia reported the results of their LCMS work studying peptide sequences. Jun Song (NS) described the current broad work which would will eventually target metabolic pathways.   He reported the identification and analyses of 1600 proteins and 80,000 peptide sequences. They are focusing on strawberry, searching for protein clusters involved with the synthesis of aroma volatiles. An eventual goal is to have the ability to make comparisons between anthocyanin regulation in climacteric and non-climacteric fruits. Jennifer D’Ell also reported on seasonal weather conditions and their effect on various fruit qualities. Growers in Quebec report that fruit appear to be getting softer at harvest. Computer modeling has been used to study the effect of seasonal variations in temperature and rainfall on soft scald and soggy breakdown development.   Metabolite level attributable to soft scald risk was conducted using metabolic profiling of 17 orchards in Washington State (Rudell, WA). Assessing metabolites at harvest proved to be difficult, but did work better in stored apple fruit. Rudell likened this to the greater value of a heart stress test done on a treadmill. A number of genes are upregulated early in cold storage. Upregulation of genes involved in disorders occurs first, then the metabolic changes are discernable a few weeks later. PAL and LOX were upregulated in fruit that eventually showed soft scald symptoms. Orchards that weren’t at risk appeared to have fewer genes associated with isoprenoid biosynthesis.   Measuring farnesyl esters in the fruit also appeared to be related to a lower risk of soft scald. Rudell reported on temperature conditioning and partial metabolic analyses, measuring ethanol, ethyl acetate and soft scald tissue damage. They found that elevated carbon dioxide always led to high succinate concentrations, but not always tissue damage. This contradicts the succinic acid story published previously in Nature by Hulme.   MILESTONES <ul> <li>Delivered protocols to small-scale producers in the NE for harvest and storage of novel plum and apple cultivars;</li> <li>Published recommendations for minimizing chilling and CA injury of Honeycrisp and other sensitive apple cultivars;</li> <li>Published a paper on preharvest factors that affect Honeycrisp apple storage;</li> <li>Published one study on harvest and storage of new plum cultivars;</li> <li>Presented findings to stakeholders and published at least two papers on the links between metabolic processes with different apple and peach postharvest disorders;</li> <li>Provided the pear and blueberry industries with the optimum MAP conditions, high CO2/O2 injury thresholds as influenced by temperature fluctuations, and identify films with the right gas permeability for long-term cold storage and long-distance sea shipment;</li> <li>Published studies on pear MAP;</li> <li>Characterized lipoxygenase enzymes in apple and determine changes in their expression with shifts in fatty acid substrates. Evaluate the potential for the involvement of the 2-carbon fatty acid synthetic pathway in the formation of short-chain precursors to esters;</li> <li>Published one study on the involvement of lipoxygenase in aroma development in apple;</li> </ul>

Publications

Impact Statements

Mango. We found that 5 or 10 mM oxalic acid applied to mango fruit postharvest reduces incidence and severity of chilling injury symptoms, which was associated with enhancement of membrane integrity and the fruit antioxidant system and energy cycle. 1-MCP was found to interact negatively with quarantine hot water treatment (QHWT) for mango, while ripening was delayed in fruit treated with 1-MCP without QHWT without injury. Recommendations for the industry note that 1-MCP may be more useful for mango markets that do not require mandatory QHWT.

Date of Annual Report: 07/18/2017

Report Information

Annual Meeting Dates: 08/07/2016 - 08/08/2016
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2015 - 09/30/2016

Participants

1. Randy Beaudry, beaudry@msu.edu
2. Diep Tran, trandiep@msu.edu
3. Chris Watkins, cbw3@cornell.edu
4. Jacquelin Nock, jfn3@cornell.edu
5. Beth Mitcham, ejmitcham@ucdavis.edu
6. Renae Moran, rmoran@maine.edu
7. Chris Walsh, cswalsh@umd.edu
8. Jennifer DeEll, jennifer.deell@ontario.ca
9. Penelope Perkins-Veazie, penelope_perkins@ncsu.edu
10. Jun Song, songj@agr.gc.ca
11. Charlie Forney, ForneyC@AGR.GC.CA
12. Steven Sargent, sasa@ufl.edu,
13. Yan Wang, Yan.Wang@oregonstate.edu
14. Jeff Brecht, jkbrecht@ufl.edu

Brief Summary of Minutes

Minutes Attachment:

NE1336 meeting minutes_2016.docx

Accomplishments

SHORT-TERM OUTCOMES Short-term outcomes for postharvest research are both fundamental and applied. Fundamental outcomes include the sharing of scientific findings and the development of collaborative projects. Applied outcomes typically involve adoption of technologies or practices by industries involved in perishables storage. Fundamental outcomes include an integrated ‘omics’ investigation from genetics, genomics, proteomic as well as metabolomics to identify development and control mechanisms of physiological disorders, especially ‘Honeycrisp’ disorders and superficial scald. A model for transcription factor control of pear ripening was suggested. Quantifications of secondary metabolites related to metabolism and nutrition quality will also provide a resource for nutritionists and marketers. Evidence of programmed cell death in degradative processes in banana fruit during ripening and over-ripening was provided as increases in several isoforms of protease and nuclease activities in peel during ripening and over-ripening. Applied outcomes include the adoption of techniques for evaluation of harvest maturity and minimizing injury due to low temperatures and stressful storage atmospheres on pome and stone fruit. Of particular note, the North American apple storage industry has adopted recommendations by members of the NE1336 to use delay of cooling (prestorage conditioning) to prevent low temperature injury of ‘Honeycrisp’ apples. In addition, delay of cooling and DPA use has also been adopted for prevention of injury from low O2 and elevated CO2 atmospheres. Information on the efficacy and applicability of the DA meter for estimating fruit harvest maturity and storage-ability of ‘Honeycrisp’ and ‘Ambrosia’ has been provided for adoption of that technology in North American apple industries. There is interest to evaluate also for ‘Gala’ apple which for which starch clearing has not been consistently useful in BC and work has been initiated at the industry Information on the efficacy of dynamic controlled atmosphere storage (DCA) and delayed high CO2 as non-chemical means of preventing storage disorders were generated and are being used to make recommendations useful to the North American apple industries. Recommendations on the use of 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP), and ethylene action inhibitor have been used to make use recommendations for the US and Canadian apple industries and the California pear industry. Similar information is being developed for the Florida avocado and mango industries. Information on several pre- and postharvest factors (such as ACU, canopy light penetration, excessive heat, 1-MCP, and CA conditions) that affect antioxidant systems affecting pear scald is being used to make storage decisions in the Oregon pear industry. New knowledge that becomes technique to reduce fruit scald susceptibility has been developed. Fruit maturity studies on late-season apple cultivars were completed. ‘Cripps Pink’ (Pink Lady) has been shown to fully-mature in the mid-Atlantic Region. Model temperature profiles are being generated on new sweet cherry cultivars to estimate potential shipping life based on expected accumulation of heat of respiration in palletized cherries. Meanwhile, pre-harvest calcium sprays with optimum application rate, timing, frequency, and calcium sources; PGR (e.g., GA3, brassinosteroids) sprays at appropriate rate and timing; adding calcium in hydrocooling water at appropriate rates; and selecting MAP with right gas permeability which matches fruit respiration rate. The industry has been adopting these technologies quickly. Applied postharvest treatments employing 5 or 10 mM oxalic acid applied on mango fruit has been reduced the postharvest incidence and severity of chilling injury symptoms. While, hot water immersion at 45oC for 30 min followed by application of commercial carnauba-based coating was shown to have potential to maintain fruit appearance and consumer acceptance, and improve nutrient composition of orange fruit.   OUTPUTS Tangible outputs in the form of peer-reviewed publications are listed under 'Publications'. Each of the participants in the NE1336 routinely generate presentations, factsheets, and reports to their respective industries. Extension publications include the Maine Apple Pest Report, NY Fruit Quarterly. In addition, states such as CA, ME, MI, NY and WA as well as OT, BC and NS Canada have extensive formal industry venues for presentation of results to growers. These include Storage workshops in MI and NY, the New England Vegetable and Fruit Growers Conference and Trade Show. The NY Fruit and Vegetable Expo, Carolinas Fruit and Vegetable Expos, the NC Winter vegetable meeting, the SE Fruit and Vegetable Expo, Annual Hood River Winter Horticultural Meeting, Pear Packers Pre-harvest meeting, Minnesota Apple Growers Association, and Great Lakes Horticulture meeting. NS Fruit Grower association annual meeting. UC Davis runs a number of specific outreach courses, e.g. Fruit Ripening and Retail Handling Workshop, each year.   ACTIVITIES Objective 1. Optimize storage regimes for existing apple, pear, plum, cherry and berry cultivars, with emphasis on new cultivars arising from breeding programs in NY, BC, ON, MI, MN and WA. Beth Mitcham, California, discussed the walnut storage and post-storage quality. Challenges with long-term storage due to 18:3 fatty acids (also decay and aflatoxin). Looked at relationships between water activity, RH, and rancidity and quality loss. Rena Moran, Maine, reported the results from plum cultivar evaluation. Then she reported the results from Delta Absorbance (DA) meter on apple harvest maturity. Some relationship between starch index and DA reading (weak relationship) for both harvests were found. After storage - DA at harvest was highly correlated DA after storage. However, poor relationship between bitter pit and DA, modest relationship between diffuse flesh browning and low DA reading was found. No relationship for soggy breakdown was found. Cindy Tong, reported the collaboration work on ‘Honeycrisp’ storage disorders with Maine and Ontario and determined the extent to which sugars and elemental content of fruit are altered in correlation with diffuse flesh browning, and studying the microstructure of peel of fruit with soft scald. Issues on DA meter failings as well as alternative (Felix F750 NIR meter), as an option for evaluating maturity was discussed. Chris Walsh reported apple maturity and harvest date on scald on ‘Cripps Pink’ and ‘Granny Smith’ and research interest in finding a visible marker for superficial scald. Anthocyanin development seemed to be related with a loss in scald susceptibility for both cultivars. No obvious relationship between DA meter and susceptibility to scald. Perkins-Veazie, North Carolina, reported on evaluation for postharvest quality attributes on strawberry selections. Pigments were evaluated and low amount of p-coumaryl hexose in one line may be related to anthracnose resistance. Randy Beaudry, MSU reported the optimization of storage method for the controlled atmosphere storage of ‘Honeycrisp’ apple in Michigan and treatment with diphenylamine (DPA) just after harvest prevents CA injury. Jun Song, Nova Scotia, reported employing an integrated ‘omics’ approach on storage disorders. From crossing of ‘Honeycrisp’ and ‘Ambrosia’ and other populations containing 340 offspring using linkage mapping, a potential marker region on Chrom2 and 3 were identified. While, soft scald development was not easily linked to the development of particular volatile profiles. Forney reported his breeding project for strawberries. Correlations emerged between postharvest decay and firmness. Firmness was positively correlated with acidity, it seemed to be more susceptible to decay. Chris Watkins, New York, reported the findings of new cultivars ‘Snapdragon’, a ‘Honeycrisp’ offspring) and New York 2 (‘Ruby Frost’, a 'Braeburn' offspring) that developed numerous postharvest issues including CO2 injury and greasiness. Chris also reported the ‘Honeycrisp’ storage related to bitter pit and soft scald. Correlations between various metabolites and disorders have been determined. Soft Scald late to develop, so a low temperature storage may be an option for a short duration. Ethanol and acetaldehyde concentrations were evaluated as a predictor of soft scald development. Jennifer DeEll, Ontario, described the research optimization of storage regimes and 1-MCP application to reduce storage injuries such CO2 injury and senescent browning. Further she reported that conditioning for one or two days at 10°C completely eliminated the chilling injury (in terms of mealiness). Yan Wang, Oregon, evaluated regimens for improving ripening capacity of ‘D'Anjou’ pears. He reported that the accumulated chill units (ACU), which reduced chilling requirements markedly. Calcium spray affected chilling requirement too with higher Ca increased chilling requirement. It is also reported that the high levels of water soluble polyuronides associated with buttery juicy texture with low oxygen (0.8 to 1%) CA storage can preserve this texture after extended storage. Texture was also affected by Calcium - with high Ca associated with better buttery texture. Once fruit lost the ability to produce ethylene, they also became unable to make buttery texture. Wang also conducted the study on control of superficial scald on pre- and postharvest factors. It seemed that the higher ACU and higher light seemed to be associated with improved resistance to scald. 1-MCP treatment of 100 ppb is becoming an industry standard, but it is as effective in commercial settings. However, 1-MCP is effective to reduce superficial scald when combined with low O2. 1-MCP application at 150 and 300 ppb on Gem pear storage was effective to preserve crispy texture and completely prevented superficial. Peter Toivonen (BC) reported his study on evaluation of 7 new advanced numbered apple cultivars (SPA628, SPA766, SPA1008, SPA1044, SPA1062, SPA1079 and SPA1080) for optimum harvest maturity recommendations has been completed. The IAD index values were found to consistently correlate to postharvest performance (IEC, firmness and titratable acidity). He also generated a model temperature profiles to estimate potential shipping life based on expected accumulation of heat of respiration in palletized cherries.   Objective 2. Investigate the effects of 1-MCP technology on fruit quality and storage disorders, and its interaction with cold storage and CA technology. Randy Beaudry, MSU discussed the importance of 1-MCP to apple industry and the challenges such as its negative impacts on aroma production and enhanced sensitivity to CO2 injury. Use of 1-MCP has the potential to supplant the use of CA for this important apple variety. Jun Song, Nova Scotia, reported a quantitative proteomic study on superficial scald disorder and effects of DPA and 1-MCP treatments. Eighteen significantly changed proteins were identified - 14 related to scald development and 4 that are decreased but increased by DPA and 1-MCP. Chlorogenic acid metabolism implicated, but 4CL (4-coumarate-CoA ligase) and a glutathione-S-transferase seem to be in scald development. Involvement of PPO in browning development of superficial scald is discussed and alternative browning pathways were suggested. Chris Watkins, New York, described the application of ‘Harvista’ and DCA on storage of ‘Gala’ and reported that the DCA was very effective at reducing radial flesh browning. DCA was also able to eliminate core browning and delay appearance of stem end browning of ‘Gala’ and ‘Fuji’ from different orchards. Jennifer DeEll, Ontario, reported the effect of the application of ‘Harvista’ and DCA on storage of ‘Gala’ and reported that slowing the cooling had an impact on reducing browning. ‘Harvista’ treatment reduced flesh browning and found to be better at reducing stem cracking compared to ReTain. ‘Harvista’ was also better at slowing maturation. Multiple applications of SmartFresh were beneficial on firmness at 6 months. Yan Wang, Oregon, evaluated 1-MCP as an alternative to Ethoxyquin for controlling superficial scald in D'Anjou pear. A concentration of 100 ppb of 1-MCP reduced black spot and scald. Effect of 1-MCP responses were a little unpredictable and seemed to depend on fruit maturity. Less mature fruit were more beneficially affected by 1-MCP. Peter Toivonen, BC, reported the effects of 1-MCP for ‘Ambrosia’ apple quality and disorder development in CA and DCA-RQ storage systems. He also found that background colour of ‘Ambrosia’ apples is the most reliable indicator of maturity under BC growing conditions.   Objective 3. Investigate the metabolic and physiological processes that underlie the responses of fruit to postharvest technologies. Beth Mitcham, California, reported the changes in gene expression for European pear (‘Bartlett’) and determined the influence to chilling, maturity and the relationship to softening. Fruit became responsive to exogenous ethylene at the transition between stages 2 and 3. After stage 3, exogenous ethylene was no longer required. Several important genes were found to be linked to the transitions between maturity stages. Low temperature treatments on ‘Bartlett’ can accelerate ripening. A number of genes and transcription factors shifted in response to the treatments. Most ethylene-related genes increase during ripening and those associated with jasmonic acid metabolism decline. A model for transcription factor control of ripening was suggested. ACO seemed to be the most promising gene to predict the rate of softening. Jeff Brecht, Steve Sargent and Donald Huber, Florida, evaluated the programmed cell death on banana during ripening and over-ripening. Signs of DNA degradation (DNA laddering) were found once brown spots were found on the skin. The internal discoloration ('Corte negro' or 'Cutting black') of mango was determined to be a chilling injury symptom. The effect of nitrogen rate and application method was evaluated for peach and it found that the highest N rate (240 lb/acre) was not problematic. Fruit were firmer at the time of harvest and after 3 days ripening. Little effect on nutritional components other than carotenoids, which were low in the lowest N treatment. The use of hot water immersion and coating material was evaluated for orange fruit. An optimal time and temperature were determined for orange fruit and several coatings were evaluated. With carnauba, a 5% O2 and 5% CO2 atmosphere could be maintained. The impact of pre-storage application of oxalic acid to reduce chilling injury in mango was determined and suggested that the oxalic acid improves the metabolic activity of antioxidant systems. Randy Beaudry, MSU, continued research on in apple and other fruit for elucidation of potential pathways for the synthesis of esters and other important aroma compounds are still being elucidated. Identified the findings on citramalate and ester formation and sequence the promoter regions of the citramalate synthase and isopropylmalate synthase genes form apples. Penny Perkins-Veazie, North Carolina, evaluated the pigment stability in Muscadine wine grapes lines with an interest in identifying with better stability. Jun Song, Nova Scotia, conducted a targeted proteomic investigations employing MRM to look at different metabolic pathways including those associated with ethylene, aroma, pigments and antioxidants. In strawberry, antioxidant metabolism was implicated in ripening. In another quantitative proteomic study on banana fruit in response to high temperature and ethylene treatment revealed 91 significantly changed proteins that were found to quantitatively change. Cluster analysis on these 91 proteins identified 7 groups of changed proteins. Ethylene treatment and storage at 20°C induced 40 proteins that are correlated with pathogen resistance, cell wall metabolism, ethylene biosynthesis, allergens and ribosomal proteins, and it repressed 36 proteins that are associated with fatty acid and lipid metabolism, redox-oxidative responses, and protein biosynthesis and modification. Ethylene treatment and storage at 30°C induced 32 proteins, which were mainly similar to those in group 1 but also included 8 proteins in group 3 (identified as chitinase, cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase 1, cysteine synthase, villin-2, leucine-tRNA ligase, CP47 protein and calmodulin) and repressed 43 proteins in 4 groups (groups 4-7), of which 6 were associated with photosynthesis II oxygen-evolving protein, the photosynthesis I reaction center, sugar metabolism, the redox-oxidative system and fatty acid metabolism. Differences in the response to ethylene and holding temperature at 30°C were also revealed and have been discussed. In order to gain better understanding on physiological disorder and effect of delayed cooling, quantitative proteomic changes in 'Ambrosia' were found in response to chilling and delayed cooling. Approximately 80 proteins were found to be linked to preconditioning and provided physiological evidence of delayed cooling at proteomic level. Song and Forney also reported that three groups of volatiles were implicated - an acetate ester, butyl acetate, hexyl butanoate and hexyl hexanoate may be related to disorder development. Chris Watkins, New York, reported the study on the pattern of starch clearing in apple and found that the onset of the degradation at the top was primarily a function of the total accumulation - with more starch content being related to later clearing. Clearing took place soonest at the stem end of the fruit. The attempt is being made to connect ripening related genes with this pattern of starch clearing. The relationship between plant growth regulators (PGRs) and IAD values (DA meter) in apple was determined. Harvista and ReTain disassociate ripening and softening behavior from the IAD reading. So IAD readings are of little value for fruit in which ethylene biology is being influenced. Research working on apple cuticles employing metabolomic, proteomic and molecular characterizations is being conducted by Jocelyn Rose and is interacting with S. Brown on germplasm available in New York plantings.   MILESTONES <ul> <li>Delivered protocols to small-scale producers in the NE for harvest and storage of novel plum and apple cultivars;</li> <li>Published recommendations for minimizing chilling and CA injury of Honeycrisp and other sensitive apple cultivars;</li> <li>Published a paper on QTL analysis of soft scald in Apple (Malus x domestica Borkh.).</li> <li>Published one study on proteomic changes of superficial scald development and DPA and treatments.</li> <li>Published two studies using targeted proteomic technique on flavor and flavonoids biosynthesis in strawberry fruit.</li> <li>Published multi studies on control of superficial scald in pears under the storage and postharvest treatments.</li> <li>Presented findings to stakeholders and published at least two papers on the links between metabolic processes with different apple and peach postharvest disorders;</li> <li>Provided the pear and blueberry industries with the optimum MAP conditions, high CO2/O2 injury thresholds as influenced by temperature fluctuations, and identify films with the right gas permeability for long-term cold storage and long-distance sea shipment;</li> <li>Characterized lipoxygenase enzymes in apple and determine changes in their expression with shifts in fatty acid substrates. Evaluate the potential for the involvement of the 2-carbon fatty acid synthetic pathway in the formation of short-chain precursors to esters;</li> <li>Published one study on the involvement of lipoxygenase in aroma development in apple;</li> <li>Having laid an experimental foundation, the next milestone will be to associate these phenotypes and chemotypes with resistance or susceptibility to postharvest disorders and loss of quality during such treatments, and then to apply the gene expression profiling technologies to gain insights into the underlying molecular pathways. This in turn will be correlated with gene expression networks in the fruit epidermis.</li> </ul>

Publications

Impact Statements

The fruit industry has greatly benefitted from group’ research findings from 1-MCP application, fruit harvest maturity and optimization of storage regimes. ‘Omic’ and breeding program will enhance the knowledge and improve marker assistance breeding program for long term. In addition, the research group has generated numerus research protocol and new methodologies in association with fruit quality. By adopting one of the technologies for pear industry, one of the major local packers in NW region documented a $1,964,937 annual increase in market value coupled with reduced repacking costs of $782,660 for a single pear cultivar. Importantly, this also increased market (buyer) confidence in fruit quality. The novel pre- and postharvest calcium treatment protocols are adopted by the PNW cherry industry quickly. Asian pear growers in the mid-Atlantic Region have been made aware of internal breakdown problems stemming from late-harvest in hot, dry seasons. Losses of stored fruits were reduced from 100 percent in 2015 to nil in 2016 by fruit growers who followed these recommendations

Date of Annual Report: 01/18/2018

Report Information

Annual Meeting Dates: 08/01/2017 - 08/04/2017
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2015 - 09/30/2016

Participants

Administrative Advisor: Chris Watkins, Cornell University, NY now also the AA
Host and Chair: Jun Song Ag. and Agri-Food Canada, NS
Secretary: Penelope Perkins-Veazie, North Carolina State University, NC
Randy Beaudry, Michigan State University, MI
Renae Moran, University of Maine, ME
Jennifer DeEll, Ontario Ministry of Food and Agriculture, ON
Mike Jordan, Leslie Campbell and Mindy Vinkiework, Food Ag. and Agri-Food Canada, NS
John DeLong, Ag. and Agri-Food Canada, NS

Reports were also submitted by nonattending participants Woods (AL), Walsh (MD), Tong (MN), Paull (Hawaii), Brecht and Sargent (FL), Crisosto (CA-K,), Rose (NY), Mitcham (CA) and Toivonen (BC).

Brief Summary of Minutes

The group observed a moment of Silence for Dr. Wang (OR) who passed away unexpectedly. Wang was to be recording secretary. A new secretary was selected to record the meeting minutes.

Requests for new member addition to the group: Amit Dhingra, WSU, was assigned to the NE1336.

A possible location for next year’s meeting is the Washington Hilton, July 29-31, near Dupont Circle before ASHS. We will plan to be on our own for meals rather than to contract with hotel.

During the second day of the meeting, the group attended the annual orchard bus tour of the Nova Scotia Apple Growers Association.

On the third day, the group met to discuss the rewrite. Two objectives and an outline of future research topics were written. It was decided to submit the request to rewrite in fall and to complete a full proposal by the spring deadline.

Accomplishments

Objective 1:  Optimize storage regimes for existing apple, pear, plum, cherry and berry cultivars, with emphasis on new cultivars arising from breeding programs in NY, BC, ON, MI, MN and WA.   Peaches, Nectarines, Plums and Cherries Chilling injury in Ontario peaches and nectarines (ON).   Increased N could yield firmer fruit that could better withstand impacts during handling and shipping (FL). Most plum cultivars ranked above Shiro in consumer acceptance tests.  American and European cultivars were ranked as highly as Asian cultivars.  Anthocyanins and phenolics were characterized in several plum types (ME).  Non-destructive prediction of soluble solids and dry matter content using NIR spectroscopy and its relationship with sensory quality in sweet cherry (CA).   Berries Rapid cooling to 18C within 90 min of harvest permitted blueberries to be held overnight and packed the next day with minimal negative effects on quality during storage (FL).   Pears and Apples Among Asian pear cultivars, Olympic was ranked as the best tasting fruit at Clarksville, probably due to its high soluble solids content (MD).  Occurrence of internal browning in Asian pears can be predicted based on fruit size and maturity at harvest (MD). Harvest and storage protocol are being developed for new pear varieties developed in Ontario (ON).   New, nondestructive instruments to measure fruit maturity and to predict storage disorders.  Several collaborating participants (MD, MN, ON, ME, NY and CA-K) tested the F750 and the DA meter as new tools to measure fruit maturity and to determine if they can be used to predict storage disorders in pears and apples.  Use of the DA meter is very cultivar specific with standards needed for each.    Several participants conducted studies to further refine the use of conditioning and storage regimes to prevent chilling injury and bitter pit in (Honeycrisp and Ambrosia) apples (ME, MD, MI, MN, NY, ON, BC and NS).  Trials with Premier Honeycrisp and Honeycrisp apple fruit grown in Pennsylvania and Maryland showed that there was little benefit or problem caused by the conditioning fruit from this region (Univ. of MD).  Deficit irrigation in the 4-5 weeks before harvest was directly associated with susceptibility of Ambrosia apples to soft scald (BC).  Harvest timing and storage methods that prevent browning in Salish apples (BC).  Accelerated starch clearing in Ambrosia apples was directly associated with low dry matter contents one month before harvest, supporting the previous observation that starch clearing index was influenced by factors other than maturity for this apple (BC).  Prediction methods for disorders of Honeycrisp apples have been investigated and show that soft scald risk is not consistently related with ethanol accumulation in the skin, but that non-chemical methods (ethylene treatment) may be useful. (NY).  A minimum of 100 ppm DPA was needed to fulle suppress CO2 injury in Honeycrisp in air storage and roughly 250 ppm DPA was needed to fully suppress CO2 injury in fruit exposed to 5% CO2. A single application of MCP at harvest is nearly as effective as 2 and 3-doses. (MI)   Storage quality of SnapDragon and RubyFrost in relation to harvest maturity and storage regimes is highly variable and our current hypothesis is that differences in browning incidence are related to watercore incidence in the fruit.  (NY).   OBJECTIVE 2:  Investigate the effects of 1-MCP technology on fruit quality and storage disorders and its interaction with cold storage and CA storage technology.  Apples Repeated expt. to avoid CA storage of Honeycrisp using air plus multiple 1-MCP applications and low temp.  No additional benefit of more 1-MCP applications.  See some physiological with shift in aroma profiles and ethylene but not nearly as much as expected. (MI).  Stem end flesh browning of Gala apples can be markedly reduced by preharvest 1-MCP and/or postharvest conditioning treatments, but dynamic controlled atmosphere storage has the greatest effect on delaying disorder development. (NY)   OBJECTIVE 3:  Investigate the metabolic and physiological processes that underlie the responses of fruit to postharvest technologies.  Pineapples   Transgenic pineapple plant with antisense ACC-synthetase screening is continuing, the original 11 lines have been reduced to four and are being evaluated in the field. Pineapple crown removal but not slip removal increase final fruit size with control fruit and fruit where slips were removed maturing sooner. Flesh translucency was higher in fruit from control plants and plants from which the slips were removed. Acidity was lower in fruit with both the crown and slips were removed. Crown and slip removal had no impact on total soluble solids. (Hawaii)    Bananas and Mangoes Evidence of programmed cell death in banana fruit during ripening and over-ripening. Storage of mangoes at 10C/50F for 3 weeks versus ripening immediately after harvest has indicated that corte negro symptoms result from postharvest chilling injury. (FL)   Blueberries, Strawberries and Grapes Maturity of blueberry variation across bush in Chile (MI).  Effects of pathogen reduction and quality assessment methods berry fruit with effects of (-irradiation (CO60), acidified sodium chlorite (ASC), hot water, and calcium treatments on firmness, textural changes and its effects on enzymatic changes, i.e., polygalacturonase, pectin methylesterase, $-galactosidase, cellulase, peroxidase and ascorbate metabolism and antioxidants (AL).   Plums ‘Santa Rosa’ bud sport series provided a model to study the role of ethylene and other key mechanisms governing fruit ripening, softening and senescence. Genomic DNA, isolated from leaf samples of six Japanese plum cultivars was used to construct paired-end standard Illumina libraries. Based on the distribution of the clades, we suggest that gene function diversification for the ripening pathway occurred prior to family extension. We herein report all the frameshift mutations in genes involved in sugar transport and ethylene biosynthesis detected as well as the gene copy number variation implicated in the ripening differences. (CA-K)   Pears.  'Bartlett' pear fruit (Pyrus communis L.) ripening regulation by low temperatures involves genes associated with jasmonic acid, cold response, and transcription factors (CA).   Apples Peel microstructure of ‘Honeycrisp’ fruit was related to soft scald. Cuticular wax of unaffected peel had upright wax platelets or clumps of wax, but peel surfaces with soft scald exhibited flattened granules and the wax layer was more fragile than that of unaffected fruit (MN, ON, ME).   Soft scald incidence and other fruit quality indices among all pairs of phenotypes in 165 cultivars over two years were evaluated. Around 40 cultivars showed soft scald incidence in each year. There are also correlations among soft scald incidence and other fruit quality indices. There is no significant SNPs associated with fruit soft scald development in this GEWAS study.  An alternative hypothesis of superficial scald development in apples is proposed. Quantitative proteomic investigation employing stable isotope dimethylation labeling by peptides reveal the molecular mechanism of soft scald development and delayed cooling in combating this low temperature induced disorder.  A group of proteins were identified as potential markers for disorder development. Cloning and characterizations of laccase genes was studied in apples and evaluated its role in superficial scald development. (NS).   The development of greasiness in Honeycrisp and Snapdragon apple fruit was studied during low temperature storage.  Initiated a project to examine the epidermal cracking and subsequent suberization of apple fruit, a disorder that is particularly frequent in progeny of Fuji and Gala cultivars.  Screened a range of apple cultivars for variations in metabolite composition, using liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (NY).

Publications

Refereed Publications   Allard, SA, CS Walsh, AE Wallis, AR Ottesen, EW Brown and SA Micallef.  2016.  Solanum lycopersicum (tomato) hosts robust phyllosphere and rhizosphere bacterial communities when grown in soil amended with various organic and synthetic fertilizers.  Science of the Total Environment.  573:555-563. Baugher, T.A., Marini, R., Schupp, J.R., Watkins, C.B. 2017. Prediction of bitter pit in ‘Honeycrisp’ apples and best management implications. HortScience 52:1368–1374. 2017. Brikis, C.J., A. Zarei, C. Trobacher, J.R. DeEll, K. Akama, R.T. Mullen, G. Bozzo, and B.J. Shelp. 2017. Ancient plant glyoxylate/succinic semialdehyde reductases: GLYR1s are cytosolic, whereas GYLR2s are localized to both mitochondria and plastids. Frontiers in Plant Sci. 8: 601, 11 pp Chopra, S. and R. Beaudry. 2016. Solar evaporative cooled storage structures for storage of fruits and vegetables. International Congress on Post-harvest Technologies of Agricultural Produce for Sustainable Food and Nutritional Security, Nov. 10-12, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India (abstract). Chopra, S. and R. Beaudry. 2016. Thermal analysis of evaporative cold rooms. International Congress on Post-harvest Technologies of Agricultural Produce for Sustainable Food and Nutritional Security, Nov. 10-12, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India (abstract). Beaudry, R.M. 2016. Atmosphere control in packages and CA rooms: Biology, technology, and future opportunities. International Congress on Post-harvest Technologies of Agricultural Produce for Sustainable Food and Nutritional Security, Nov. 10-12, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India (abstract). Beaudry, R. 2017. Mechanization for harvest and postharvest handling of fruits and vegetables. Great Plains Growers Conference, Jan. 12-14, Missouri, USA (abstract). Chopra, S. and R. Beaudry. 2017. Evaporatively cooled rooms for storing perishables: designs to accommodate solar powered refrigeration. Great Plains Growers Conference, Jan. 12-14, Missouri, USA (abstract). Beaudry, R.M. 2017. Lessons from the US: Current postharvest technologies in fruit and vegetables. Vietnam Educational Foundation meeting, Feb. 11, Phoenix, AZ (abstract). Beaudry, R.M. 2017. Atmosphere Control in Packages and CA Rooms: Biology, Technology, and Future Opportunities. International Controlled Atmosphere and Modified Atmosphere Packaging (CAMA) Conference, June 17-22, Warsaw, Poland (abstract). Chopra, S., N. Mueller, R.M. Beaudry. 2017. Innovative evaporatively-cooled solar-refrigerated structures for storage of perishables in India. American Society for Horticultural Science, Sept. 16-20, Kona, HI, (abstract). Chopra, S., S. Dhumal, P. Abeli, R. Beaudry, E. Almenar. 2017. Metal-organic frameworks can sorb, store and release ethylene and 1-methylcyclopropene. American Society for Horticultural Science, Sept. 16-20, Kona, HI, (abstract). Moggia, C., R.M. Beaudry, J. Retamales, and G.A. Lobos. 2017. Not Just Diffusion: Insights on Mechanisms for Water Loss in Blueberry. American Society for Horticultural Science, Sept. 16-20, Kona, HI, (abstract). Chopra, S. S. Dhumal, P. Abeli, R. Beaudry, E. Almenar. 2017. Metal-organic frameworks have utility in adsorption and release of ethylene and 1-methylcyclopropene in fresh produce packaging. Postharvest Biol. Technol. 130:48-55. Guimarães, G.H., R.L. Dantas, A.S. Bezerra de Sousa, L.G. Soares, R. de Sá Melo, R. Sousa da Silva, R.P. Lima, R.M. Mendonça, R.M. Beaudry and S. de Melo Silva. 2017.  Impact of cassava starch-alginate based coatings added with ascorbic acid and elicitor on quality and sensory attributes during pineapple storage. African J. Ag. Res. 12:664-673. Moggia, C., R.M. Beaudry, J. Retamales, G.A. Lobos. 2017. Variation in the impact of stem scar and cuticle on water loss in highbush blueberry fruit argue for the use of water permeance as a selection criterion in breeding. Postharvest Biol. Technol. 132:88-96. Cliff, M.A. and Toivonen, P.M.A. 2017. Sensory and quality characteristics of Ambrosia apples in relation to harvest maturity and storage conditions. Postharvest Biology and Technology 132: 145-153. Cliff, M.A., Stanich, K. and Toivonen, P.M.A. 2017. Evaluation of the sensory, physicochemical and visual characteristics for a sweet cherry cultivar treated in a commercial orchard with a cherry cuticle supplement when a rainfall event does not occur. HortTechnology 27:416-423. Crisosto, C.H., G.M. Crisosto, and J.R. Bermejo. 2017. Applying non-destructive Sensors to improve fresh fruit consumer satisfaction and increase consumption. ActaHortic. 2016. 1119.31 de Freitas, S.T., F. Martinelli, B.Feng, N. F. Reitz, E. J. Mitcham. 2017. Transcriptome approach to understand the potential mechanisms inhibiting or triggering blossom-end rot development in tomato fruit in response to plant growth regulators. Journal Plant Growth Regulation, 1-16. DeEll, J.R., and G.B. Lum. 2017. Effects of low oxygen and 1-methylcyclopropene on storage disorders in ‘Empire’ apples. HortScience 52:1265-1270. Du, L., Song, J., Campbell Palmer, L., Fillmore, S., Zhang, Z. 2016. Quantitative proteomic investigation reveals the proteome changes in development of superficial scald disorder and control mechanism of diphenylamine and 1-MCP treatments in apple fruit. Postharvest Biology and Technology. Du, L., Song, J., Campbell Palmer, L., Fillmore, S., Zhang, Z.Q. 2016. Proteome changes in banana fruit peel tissue in response to ethylene and high temperature treatments. Horticultural Research. Article number: 16012 (2016). Escribano, S., W.V. Biasi, R. Lerud, D. C. Slaughter, E.J. Mitcham. 2017. Non-destructive prediction of soluble solids and dry matter content using NIR spectroscopy and its relationship with sensory quality in sweet cherries Postharvest Biology Technology. 128:112-120.   Gapper, N.E., Hertog, M.L.A.T.M., Lee, J., Buchanan, D.A., Leisso, R.S., Fei, Z., Qu, G., Giovannoni, J.J., Johnston, J.W., Schaffer, R.J., Nicolaï, B.M., Mattheis, J.P., Watkins, C.B., Rudell, D.R. 2017.  Delayed response to cold stress is characterized by successive metabolic shifts culminating in apple fruit peel necrosis. BMC Plant Biology 17:77 Gong, Yihui, Jun Song, Lina Du, Mindy Vinquest, Leslie Campbell Palmer, Sherry Fillmore, XueQun, Pang and ZhaoQi Zhang. 2017. Characterization of laccase from apple fruit during postharvest storage and its response to diphenylamine and 1-methycycloprepene treatments. Food Chemistry (review). Honghui Luo, Jun Song, Peter Toivonen, Gong, Yihui, Charles Forney, Leslie Campbell Palmer, Sherry Fillmore, XueQun Pang and ZhaoQi, Zhang. 2017. Proteomic changes in ‘Ambrosia’ apple fruit during cold storage and in response to delayed cooling treatment. Postharvest Biology and Technology (in press). Lachappelle, M., G. Bourgeois, J.R. DeEll, K. Stewart, and P. Séquin.  2017. Modelling the effect of preharvest weather conditions on the incidence of soggy breakdown in ‘Honeycrisp’ apples. HortScience 52:756-763. Lee, J.S., B.M. Hurr, D.J. Huber, C.E. Vallejos and S.A. Sargent. 2015. Characterization of proteases and nucleases associated with ethylene-induced programmed cell death in immature cucumber fruit. Postharvest Biology and Technology 110:190-196. Li, P., X. Zheng, M.G.F. Chowdhury, K. Cordasco, and J.K. Brecht. 2015. Pre-storage application of oxalic acid to alleviate chilling injury in mango fruit. HortScience 50:1795-1800 Lum, G.B., J.R. DeEll, G. Hoover, S. Subedi, B.J. Shelp, and G. Bozzo. 2017. 1-Methylcyclopropene and controlled atmosphere modulate oxidative stress metabolism and reduce senescence-related disorders in stored pear fruit. Postharvest Biol. Technol. 129:52-63. Mahajan, P., Caleb, O., Gil, M.I., Izumi, H., Colelli, G., Watkins, C.B., Zude, M. 2017. Quality and safety of fresh horticultural commodities: Recent advances and future perspectives. Food Packaging and Shelf Life 14:2-11. Manganaris, George and Carlos Crisosto.  2017. Apricots, Nectarines, Peaches and Plums. In: Controlled and Modified Atmosphere for Fresh and Fresh-Cut Produce, edited by Mabel Gil and Randolph Beaudry, ISBN 978-0-12-804599-2, Elsevier. ** IN PRESS ** McClure, K , Gardner, K.M., Douglas, G., Song, J. Forney, C.F. Toivonen, P.M.T., Hampson, C., D. Somers, J. DeLong, J. Rajcan, I. and Myles, S. 2017. A Genome-Wide Association Study of Apple Quality and Scab Resistance. The Plant Genome (in press). McClure, K.A., Toivonen, P.M.A., Hampson, C.R., Song, J., Forney, C., Delong, J., Rajcan, I. and Myles, S. 2016. A QTL Analysis of Soft Scald in Two Apple (Malus x domestica) Populations. Horticultural Research 3, 16043 Nham, N.T., A. J. Macnish, F. Zakharov, E. J. Mitcham. 2017. 'Bartlett' pear fruit (Pyrus communis L.) ripening regulation by low temperatures involves genes associated with jasmonic acid, cold response, and transcription factors. Plant Science, 260: 8-18. Nham, N.T., N. Willits, F. Zakharov, and E.J. Mitcham. 2017. A model to predict ripening capacity of ‘Bartlett’ pears (Pyrus communis L.) based on relative expression of genes associated with the ethylene pathways. Postharvest Biology and Technology, 128: 138-143. Osuna-Garcia, J.A., J.K. Brecht, D.J. Huber, and Y. Nolasco-Gonzalez. 2015. Aqueous 1-methylcyclopropene to delay ripening of ‘Kent’ mango with or without quarantine hot water treatment. HortScience 25:349-357. Paudel1, J., Jun Song, Itkin Maximme, Asaph Aharoni, Helen Tai. Pathogen and pest responses are altered in Glycoalkaloid Metabolism 4 RNAi Solanum tuberosum. 2017. Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions. Vol.30 (11): 876–885. Paull, R.E, Nancy Jung Chen, Ray Ming, Ching Man Wai, Neil Shirley, Julian Schwerdt and Vincent Bulone. 2016. Carbon Flux and Carbohydrate Gene Families in Pineapple. Tropical Plant Biology 9, 200-213 Schneider, KR, J De, Y Li, A Sreedharan, R Goodrich-Snyder, MD Danyluk, DM Pahl, CS Walsh, J Todd-Searle, DW Schaffner, W Kline and RL Buchanan.  2017.  Food Control.  73:511-517. Song, J., Li, L, Yang, XT, Leslie Campbell Palmer, XiHong Li, and ZhaoQi Zhang. 2016. Quantitative proteomic investigations using stable isotope labeling by peptide dimethylation and multi reaction monitoring on fruit ripening, senescence and redox- antioxidant system. Acta Hort (in press). Toivonen, P., Batista, A. and Lannard, B. 2017. Development of a predictive model for ‘Lapins’ sweet cherry dry matter content using a visible/near infrared spectrometer and its potential application to other cultivars. Canadian Journal of Plant Science. 97: 1030–1035. Tong, C.B.S., H.-Y. Chang, J.K. Boldt, B. Ma, J.R. DeEll, R. E. Moran, G. Bourgeois, and D. Plouffe. 2016. Diffuse flesh browning in ‘Honeycrisp’ apple fruit is associated with low temperature during fruit growth.  HortScience 51:1256-1264. Xu, Y., Y. Ma, N.P. Howard, C. Chen, C.B.S. Tong, G. Celio, J. DeEll, and R. Moran. 2017. Microstructure of soft scald in ‘Honeycrisp’ apples (Malus × domestica Borkh.). J. Amer. Hort. Sci. 142:464-469. Yang, XT, Song, J., Campbell-Palmer, Leslie, Fillmore, Sherry Paul Wismer and Zhang, Zhaoqi. 2016. Evidences from individual studies of ethylene and 1-MCP treatment prove that volatile biosynthesis is regulated by ethylene in apple (cv. Golden Delicious). Food Chemistry. 194:325-336. Zarei, A., C.J. Brikis, V.S. Bajwa, G.Z. Chiu, J.P. Simpson, J.R. DeEll, G.G. Bozzo, and B.J. Shelp. 2017. Plant glyoxylate/succinic semialdehyde reductases: comparative biochemical properties, function during chilling stress, and subcellular localization. Frontiers in Plant Sci. 8: 1399, 13 pp Zhang, Xuelian; Fang, Fang; He, Quan; Zhang, Xin; Shi, Ningbo; Song, Jun; Zhang, Zhaoqi; Pang, Xuequn. 2017. Enzymatic Characterization of a Laccase from Lychee Pericarp in Relation to Browning Reveals the Mechanisms for Fruit Color Protection. Journal of Food Processing and Preservation. (in press). Zhu, Y., J. Yu, J.K. Brecht, T. Jiang, and X. Zheng. 2016. Pre-harvest application of oxalic acid increases quality and resistance to Penicillium expansum in kiwifruit during postharvest storage. Food Chemistry 190:537-543.     Book Chapters, Production Guides, Extension and Trade Publications Al Shoffe, Y., Nock, J.F., Baugher, T.A., Watkins, C.B. 2017. Ethanol accumulation does not predict soft scald in ‘Honeycrisp’ apples. New York Fruit Quarterly 25(2):25-29. Beaudry, R.M. and D.R. Dilley. 2016. Postharvest management of stone and pome fruits. Michigan Fruit Management Guide, E-154, pp. 254-258. Chowdhury, M.G.F., J.K. Brecht, and M.A. Ritenour. 2016. Can appearance, nutritional quality, and shelf life of Navel orange be enhanced by a postharvest heat treatment. Proc. Fla. State Hort. Soc. Crisosto, C.H. 2017. Postharvest Handling Systems: Stone Fruits-- Apricots. In A.A. Kader and J.F. Thompson (eds.) Postharvest Technology of Horticultural Crops, Fourth Edition. University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Publication 3311, pp. 351 -352. Crisosto, C.H. and F.G. Mitchell 2017. Postharvest Handling Systems: Small Fruits-- Kiwifruit. In A.A. Kader and J.F. Thompson (eds.) Postharvest Technology of Horticultural Crops, Fourth Edition. University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Publication 3311, pp. 371 -374. Crisosto, C.H. and F.G. Mitchell: Postharvest Handling Systems. 2017. Small Fruits - Table Grapes. In A.A. Kader and J.F. Thompson (eds.) Postharvest Technology of Horticultural Crops, Fourth Edition. University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Publication 3311, pp. 357 -363. Crisosto, C.H. and F.G. Mitchell: Postharvest Handling Systems: Stone Fruits - Peach, Nectarine, and Plum. 2017. In A.A. Kader and J.F. Thompson (eds.) Postharvest Technology of Horticultural Crops, Fourth Edition. University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Publication 3311, pp. 345 -350. Crisosto, C.H. and J.P. Mitchell: Preharvest Factors Affecting Fruit and Vegetable Quality. 2017. In A.A. Kader and J.F. Thompson (eds.) Postharvest Technology of Horticultural Crops, Fourth Edition. University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Publication 3311, pp. 49 -54. De Freitas, S.T., C. do Amarante, E.J. Mitcham. 2016. Calcium deficiency disorders in plants. In: Postharvest Ripening Physiology of Crops, CRC Press, pp.477-502 Doerflinger, F., Sutano, G., Nock, J.F., Al Shoffe, Y., Zhang, Y., Watkins, C.B. 2017. Stem-end flesh browning of ‘Gala’ apples is decreased by preharvest 1-MCP (Harvista) and conditioning treatments. New York Fruit Quarterly 25(3):9-14. Lobo, M. G. and R. E. Paull. 2017. Handbook of Pineapple Technology. Production, postharvest science, processing and nutrition. Wiley Blackwell, West Sussex, United Kingdom. 263 pp. Loeb, A and C Walsh. 2016.  Heat tolerant lettuce cultivars in a blazing hot summer.  2016.  Vegetable and Fruit News.  University of Maryland Extension.  7 (6): 3-5. Love, K., Robert E. Paull, Alyssa Cho and Andrea Kawabata. 2017. Tropical Fruit Tree Propagation Guide. University of Hawaii at Manoa, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources. Fruit, Nut, and Beverage Crops March 2017, F_N-49. <a href="https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/F_N-49.pdf">https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/F_N-49.pdf</a> Majubwa, R.O., J.X. Chaparro, S.A. Sargent, D.J. Huber, M.A. Ritenour, C.A. Sims, T.J. Msogoya. 2016. Sensory and physiochemical fruit quality of three seedless mandarin (Citrus reticulata Blanco) cultivars grown on three rootstocks. Proc. Fla. State Hort. Soc. Mitcham, E.J. and C.H. Crisosto. 2017. Postharvest Handling Systems: Stone Fruits -- Sweet Cherry. In A.A. Kader and J.F. Thompson (eds.) Postharvest Technology of Horticultural Crops, Fourth Edition. University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Publication 3311, pp. 353 -356. Moran, R.  Plum Production in Maine.  <a href="https://extension.umaine.edu/publications/2034e/">https://extension.umaine.edu/publications/2034e/</a>.  July 2017. Paull, R. E., D. P. Bartholomew & C-C Chen. 2017. Pineapple breeding and production practices. pg 16 - 38. In. Lobo, M. G. and R. E. Paull. Handbook of Pineapple Technology. Production, postharvest science, processing and nutrition. Wiley Blackwell, West Sussex, United Kingdom. Paull, R. E., N. J. Chen & P. Saradhuldhat. 2017.Pineapple harvesting and postharvest handling. pg 89 - 107. In. Lobo, M. G. and R. E. Paull. Handbook of Pineapple Technology. Production, postharvest science, processing and nutrition. Wiley Blackwell, West Sussex, United Kingdom. Razali, N.A., A.C. Nascimento Antunes, A. Berry, and S.A. Sargent. 2016. Postharvest storage temperature and coating effects on fruit quality of red-fleshed pitaya (Hylerocereus costarricenses). Proc. Fla. State Hort. Soc. Thompson, J.F. and Crisosto. 2017. Handling at Destination Markets. In A.A. Kader and J.F. Thompson (eds.) Postharvest Technology of Horticultural Crops, Fourth Edition. University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Publication 3311, pp. 271 -277. Tiyayon, Chantalak and Robert E. Paull. 2017. Mango Production. pp 17 - 35. In. Handbook of Mango Fruit: Production, Postharvest Science, Processing Technology and Nutrition. M. Siddiq (Ed), J. K. Brecht & J. S. Sidhu (Assoc. Eds.). Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford, UK. Walsh, 2017. <a href="http://extension.psu.edu/plants/tree-fruit/news/2016/2016-apple-maturity-assessments2014week-11?utm_campaign=Fruit+Times&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter_more">http://extension.psu.edu/plants/tree-fruit/news/2016/2016-apple-maturity-assessments2014week-11?utm_campaign=Fruit+Times&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_content=newsletter_more</a> Walsh, CS and MJ Newell.  Internal breakdown reported in Olympic Asian pear fruit.  <a href="http://extension.psu.edu/plants/tree-fruit/news/2015/internal-breakdown-reported-in-2018olympic2019-asian-pear-fruit">http://extension.psu.edu/plants/tree-fruit/news/2015/internal-breakdown-reported-in-2018olympic2019-asian-pear-fruit</a>  (October 8, 2015). Watkins, C.B. 2017. Advances in postharvest handling and storage of apples. In: Achieving Sustainable Cultivation of Apples. p. 337-367. Evans, E. (Ed.). Burleigh Dodds Scientific Publishing. Watkins, C.B. 2017. Postharvest physiology of edible plant tissues. In: Fenenema’s Food Chemistry, 5th edition. p. 1017-1085. Damodaran, S., Parkin, K.L. (eds). CRC Press, Boca Raton.

Impact Statements

Based on this research, we recommended growers pick Olympic pears two weeks earlier to avoid problems, minimize consumer complaints and ensure adequate storage life. Growers who had reported complete crop losses in 2015 followed these recommendations and successfully marketed their 2016 crop of Olympic Asian pears. (MD)

Date of Annual Report: 09/12/2018

Report Information

Annual Meeting Dates: 07/29/2018 - 07/30/2018
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2017 - 09/30/2018

Participants

Participants Attending the Annual Meeting:
Randy Beaudry, Michigan State Univ.
Jennifer DeEll, OMAFRA
Ines Hanrahan, Washington State Tree Fruit Research Commission
Cindy Tong, Univ. of Minnesota
Jeff Brecht, Univ. of Florida
Steve Sergent, Univ. of Fla
Christopher Walsh, Univ. of Maryland
Kathy Hunt, Univ. of Maryland
Renae Moran, Univ. of Maine
Penelepe Perkins-Veazie, North Carolina State Univ.
Elizabeth Mitcham, Univ. of California
Tianbao Yang, USDA ARS Beltsville
Chaim Frenkel, Rutgers Univ.
Loren Honaas, Washington State Univ.
Dave Rudell, USDA ARS Wenatchee
Brentan Poirier, Washington State Univ.
Christine McTavish, Washington State Univ.
Susan Brown, Cornell Univ.

Participants Submitting Reports by email:
Peter Toivonen, Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre, Summerland, BC
Robert Paull, University of Hawaii at Manoa

Brief Summary of Minutes

Summary of the Minutes of the Annual Meeting:

Rewrite of the new proposal is pending final approval. Randy summarized the future objectives.

Penny recorded an account of the state reports given during the meeting. Renae will assemble the group report AD421.

Susan Brown gave the report from the USDA. We are one of the strongest groups and should consider applying for an award at the national level, Multistate Research Award. Impact statements are useful. Common, but negative perception among consumers about long-term storage. New varieties – shocked by the number of disorders in supermarkets. High expectations from young trees and new varieties making it to market before postharvest worked out. RosBreed is writing a new proposal. Viral load and its impact on horticulture and postharvest aspects needs to be looked at in the future.

Minutes Attachment:

NE1336 minutes 2018.docx

Accomplishments

Accomplishments: Linkages Internal cooperative projects were conducted by California, Florida, Maine, Minnesota, North Carolina, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and USDA ARS-Wenatchee.   External cooperative projects were conducted with the Univ. of Arkansas, USDA ARS-WV, ARS FL, NC140 project, PennState Univ. Cooperative Extension, Summerland Varieties Corporation (BC), Volcani Institute and various stakeholder groups and clientele in each cooperating state and province.   Fruit crops reported on this year:  Apple, blueberry, cherry, mango, muscadines, orange, papaya, peach, pear, pineapple, pitaya, plum, strawberry, walnut and watermelon.   For additional details, refer to the meeting minutes.                         OBJECTIVE 1.  Optimize storage regimes for existing apple, pear, plum, cherry and berry cultivars, with emphasis on new cultivars arising from breeding programs in NY, BC, ON, MI, MN and WA.  Discussion led by DeEll.  Reports were given by Maine, Maryland, USDA Beltsville, Michigan, Minnesota, and Ontario.  After the meeting, a report was submitted from British Columbia.   British Columbia 1) Suitability for containerized shipping of new sweet cherry cultivars. 2) Effect of harvest maturity, controlled atmosphere storage and 1-methylcyclopropene on quality retention in new apple cultivars. 3) Evaluating IAD for maturity indexing in apples and resolving artefacts and measurement errors. Peter Toivonen, Amritpal Singh, Margaret Cliff, Masoumeh Bejaei   Maine 1) Using the DA (Delta Absorbance) Meter to Schedule Harvest of Honeycrisp Apples – Years 2 and 3. Collaboration with DeEll and Tong. 2) Bitter Pit Incidence in Honeycrisp Grown on Different Rootstocks. Collaborators: NC140   Maryland 1) Apple fruit maturity trials with new cultivars: Premier Honeycrisp, Honeycrisp, Gala, Crimson Crisp, Fuji, Cripps Pink and others (Baugher, Bissett, Hunt, Loeb and Walsh). Beginning in July 2017, 13 weekly fruit maturity updates on new cultivars were posted by for Mid-Atlantic growers on the Penn State Extension website.  In addition, photographs showing the median starch-iodine staining patterns were included, alerting the industry to the early ripening of apples in 2017 so growers could avoid preharvest fruit drop and improve quality of stored fruit. 2) Observations of post-harvest quality after long-term storage of recently developed apple selections.  (Hunt and Walsh).  Eastern fruit growers are particularly interested in Evercrisp, a new cultivar that is a Fuji by Honeycrisp cross known for fruit that remains firm for a year in cold storage.  Although these apples are crisp following storage, samples taken from farm markets in Maryland showed a range of calcium deficiency symptoms.   3) Conditioning trials with Premier Honeycrisp and Honeycrisp apple fruit grown in Pennsylvania and Maryland (Baugher, Bissett, Hunt and Walsh). Conditioned and unconditioned Honeycrisp apples were evaluated after six months storage.  There was no soft scald seen in either treatment again in 2017. We continue to recommend that Honeycrisp apples grown in the mid-Atlantic region not be Conditioned prior to storage. 4) Asian pear fruit quality and consumer acceptance. (Hunt, Newell, and Walsh).  Asian pear fruits are harvested tree-ripe.  In previous years, Olympic was ranked as the best tasting fruit at Clarksville, MD.  This result is similar to grower observations and particularly notable as this cultivar has also shown good field tolerance to fire blight.  Breakdown was induced by hot, dry weather in August and September in 2015, 2016 and 2017.  Growers have been advised to harvest prior to tree-ripe in this variety, avoiding buyer rejections and loss of crop sales.    Michigan 1) Field conditioning to prevent CA injury of Honeycrisp CA injury due to CO2 Can be controlled conditioning fruit in the field by holding fruit for 100 degree-days using a minimum temperature of 0 °C. 2) Redesigning evaporatively cooled rooms to incorporate solar powered refrigeration in India. A hybrid evaporatively-cooled and solar-refrigerated structure was successfully constructed in India an able to maintain temperatures between 8 and 14 °C. Sangeeta Chopra, Diep Tran, Ben Paskus, Patrick Abeli, Robert Tritten, Bill Shane, Amy Irish-Brown, Nikki Rothwell, Phil Schwallier   Minnesota 1) Physiological basis and methods to mitigate novel postharvest storage disorder in MN1955 apple.     MN1955, also known as ‘Rave’, produce fruit in mid- to late-August. If stored at 0-4 °C, the fruit’s skin can develop dimples after 1.5-2 months. Dimpling is not alleviated by treatments with DPA, 1-MCP, or preconditioning at 5 °C. Dimpling may be associated with presence of RNA viruses. 2) Testing the Felix F-750 spectrometer to assess fruit quality (Collaboration with ON and ME). The Felix F-750 spectrometer was compared to the DA meter using Honeycrisp fruit from ON, ME, and MN. Coefficients of determination showing linear fit of DA meter IAD values to those calculated from F-750 measurements ranged from 0.2 to 0.84, depending on location and harvest.     Ontario ‘AC Harrow Crisp’ pears - effects of postharvest 1-MCP and CA storage     OBJECTIVE 2.  Investigate the effects of 1-MCP technology on fruit quality and storage disorders, and its interaction with cold storage and CA storage technology.  Discussion led by J. Song.  Reports were given by Michigan and Ontario.  Reports submitted after the meeting from Hawaii.   Hawaii 1) Papaya.  We have shown that jasmonic acid like 1-MCP can delay fruit ripening especially when applied before the 25% ripe stage. This will be confirmed and analyzed further with fruit from our new planting.   Michigan Multiple applications of 1-MCP to avoid CA storage and CA injury of Honeycrisp apple. Multiple applications improved the quality of air-stored Honeycrisp apple fruit when applied at 15-day intervals at 3 °C.   Ontario 1) Effect of preharvest 1-MCP (HarvistaTM) on ‘Empire’ apples after long-term CA storage Preharvest 1-MCP spray (Harvista) increased the incidence of flesh and core browning. (G. Lum, J. DeEll, B. Shelp, and G. Bozzo) Postharvest 1-MCP treatment (SmartFresh) further increased disorder incidence. (J. DeEll, A. Tattersall, and L. Walker) 2) Effect of preharvest 1-MCP (HarvistaTM) on quality of ‘McIntosh’ apples after harvest (J. DeEll, M. Plommer, A. Tattersall, and L. Walker) 3) Internal browning in ‘Gala’ apples during CA storage with and without 1-MCP (SmartFresh) (J. DeEll, L. Walker, and G. Lum) 4) Low O2 storage using DCA-RQ (SafePod Technology) and 1-MCP on ‘Honeycrisp’ apples (J. DeEll, L. Walker, and G. Lum) 5) Short-term CA for ‘Honeycrisp’ apples (J. DeEll, J. Mattheis)     OBJECTIVE 3.  Investigate the metabolic and physiological processes that underlie the responses of fruit to postharvest technologies.  Discussion led by Moran.  Reports were given by California, Michigan, Florida, Maine, USDA ARS Beltsville, North Carolina, Nova Scotia, Rutgers Univ., and Washington State Univ.  After the meeting, reports were submitted by British Columbia and Hawaii.   British Columbia Managing internal browning of long term stored new apple cultivars.   California 1) Elucidating the mechanism of pit formation in sweet cherries (Prunus avium) for improving storage capacity (Kelly Richmond, Bill Biasi and Beth Mitcham). 2) Determining the role of lignification in tomato blossom-end rot development (Nicholas Reitz and Beth Mitcham). 3) Improving the quality of stored walnuts by understanding the influence of temperature and relative humidity on the rate of deterioration. (Claire Adkison, Bill Biasi, Veronique Bikoba and Beth Mitcham).   Florida (details available in the minutes) Blueberry Mechanical Harvest [Sargent, Berry, Takeda (ARS-WV), Williamson] Blueberry Temperature Management (De, Schneider, Sargent, Berry, Brecht) Peach Temperature Management (Sargent, Makani, Berry, Brecht, Schneider, De) Effect of Postharvest Cooling on the Microbial Quality and Storage of Florida Peaches (De, Bertoldi, Gutierrez, Mohammad, Sargent, Schneider) Smart Strawberry and Peach Precooling Management [Uysal (USF), Mercier (USF), Brecht] Peach N/Fruit Quality (Rubio, Brecht, Olmstead) Orange Hot Water and Coating Treatment (Brecht, Chowdhury, Ritenour) Mango Internal Discoloration (AKA "Corte Negro" or "Cutting Black") (Brecht, Schaffer, Crane, Li) Fresh-cut Mango Quality Survey. [Brecht; Plotto, Baldwin & Bai (ARS-FL), C. Crisosto & G. Crisosto (UCD)] It’s Fresh: The Role of Wound-induced Ethylene Production and Sensitivity to Ethylene in Determining the Efficacy of Ethylene Adsorption in Extending Produce Shelf Life (Brecht, Chang) Harvest Maturity Stage Affects Fruit Quality and Postharvest Behavior of Red-Fleshed Pitaya (Hylocereus costaricenses) (Razali, Sargent, Berry, Brecht)   Hawaii Pineapple.  Our data also support our hypothesis that sugar accumulation by pineapple is apoplastic with hexose transporters being upregulated during ripening.  Previously we had shown that methyl jasmonate (MeJA) treatment pineapple fruit had less incidence of butt rot and decay than the control fruit. Translucency and internal browning was also less than the control fruit. The treated fruit also had better crown appearance than untreated control with room temperature storage. This research is ongoing varying the critical commercial handling practices.   Maine Bioactive Compounds and Antioxidant Capacity in Cultivars of Three Plum Species. Moran, Myracle, Cole and Hwang   Michigan 1) Effects of CO2 and O2 on fermentative volatile production by ‘Honeycrisp’ apple fruit. Fermentative volatile emanations increased with increasing damage due to CO2 injury, but are likely the result, not the cause of tissue damage. 2) Effects of CO2 and O2 on key metabolites by ‘Honeycrisp’ apple fruit. Exposure to high levels of CO2 in the storage environment upset metabolite balance in 'Honeycrisp' apple fruit. ATP, AEC, and ascorbate levels diminished, succinate increased, but NADH and NADPH were largely unaffected.   Nova Scotia 1) A Genome-Wide Association Study (GWAS) of Apple Quality, Collaborators: Kendra A. McClure, Daryl J. Somers and Sean Myles. 2) Quantitative proteomic changes in apples in response to ‘Harvista’ and 1-MCP treatments, Collaborators: Jennifer DeEll (OMAFRA)   New Jersey Molecular basis for chilling tolerance. Hydration state of fatty acid hydrocarbon chain in membrane lipid might be a molecular basis for cold stress and tolerance.  Se-Young Ju and Chaim Frenkel   North Carolina 1) Changes in sugars in stored muscadine grapes or with different species. 2) Composition of watermelon tissue from grafted watermelons with or without hollow heart.  3) Use of a refractometer/acidity meter to predict titratable acidity.  Cooperators:  Jim Ballington, Terry Bland, Massimo Iorrizo, Hamid Ashrafi, Jonathan Schultheis, Marlee Trandel, John Clark, Gina Fernandez

Publications

Publications <table> <tbody> <tr> <td>   Adkison, E. C., Biasi, W. B., Bikoba, V., Holstege, D. M., & Mitcham, E. J. (2018). Effect of canning and freezing on the nutritional content of apricots. Journal of food science. Basinger, N, Jennings, K., Monks, D, Mitcham, W. Perkins-Veazie, P., Chaudhari, S. 2017. In-row vegetation-free strip width effect on established ‘Navaho’ blackberry. Weed Technol. 1-5. doi:10.1017/wet.2017.85 Beaudry, R. 2017. Mechanization for harvest and postharvest handling of fruits and vegetables. Great Plains Growers Conference, Jan. 12-14, Missouri, USA (abstract). Beaudry, R.M. 2016. Atmosphere control in packages and CA rooms: Biology, technology, and future opportunities. International Congress on Post-harvest Technologies of Agricultural Produce for Sustainable Food and Nutritional Security, Nov. 10-12, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India (abstract). Beaudry, R.M. 2017. Atmosphere Control in Packages and CA Rooms: Biology, Technology, and Future Opportunities. International Controlled Atmosphere and Modified Atmosphere Packaging (CAMA) Conference, June 17-22, Warsaw, Poland (abstract). Beaudry, R.M. 2017. Lessons from the US: Current postharvest technologies in fruit and vegetables. Vietnam Educational Foundation meeting, Feb. 11, Phoenix, AZ (abstract). Beaudry, R.M. and D.R. Dilley. 2017. Postharvest management of stone and pome fruits. Michigan Fruit Management Guide, E-154, pp. 254-258. Beaudry, R.M., D. Tran. 2017. CO2 injury in ‘Honeycrisp’ and 'Empire' apples: Dose response to diphenylamine. International Controlled Atmosphere and Modified Atmosphere Packaging (CAMA) Conference, June 17-22, Warsaw, Poland (abstract).              Boonruang, K., Kerddonfag, N., Chinsirikul, W., Mitcham, E. J., & Chonhenchob, V. (2017). Antifungal effect of poly (lactic acid) films containing thymol and R-(-)-carvone against anthracnose pathogens isolated from avocado and citrus. Food Control, 78, 85-93. Boz, Z., B.A. Welt, J.K. Brecht, W. Pelletier, E. McLamore, G.A. Kiker, and J.E. Butler. 2018. Review of challenges and advances in modification of food package headspace gases. J. Applied Packaging Res. 10:62-97. Brecht, J. K. 2018. Mango, Ch. 21. In: S. Pareek and S. Tonetto de Freitas (eds.). Physiological Disorders in Fruits and Vegetables. CRC Press, Boca Raton, Fla. (in press) Brecht, J.K. and E.M. Yahia. 2017. Harvesting and postharvest technology of mango, p. 105-129. In: M. Siddiq, J.K. Brecht, and J.S. Sidhu (eds.). Handbook of Mango Fruit: Production, Postharvest Science, Processing Technology and Nutrition. Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Co., Oxford, UK. Brecht, J.K., A. Plotto, E.A. Baldwin, J. Bai, C. Crisosto, and G. Crisosto. 2017. Sensory quality of fresh-cut mango at the consumer level sampled through the year. Proc. Fla. State Hort. Soc. 130:158–164. 2017. Brikis, C.J., A. Zarei, C. Trobacher, J.R. DeEll, K. Akama, R.T. Mullen, G. Bozzo, and B.J. Shelp.  2017.  Ancient plant glyoxylate/succinic semialdehyde reductases: GLYR1s are cytosolic, whereas GYLR2s are localized to both mitochondria and plastids.  Frontiers in Plant Sci. 8: 601, 11 pp.  doi: 10.3389/fpls.2017.00601 Brikis, C.J., A. Zarei, G.Z. Chiu, K.L. Deyman, J. Liu, C.P. Trobacher, G. Hoover, S. Subedi, J.R. DeEll, G. Bozzo, and B.J. Shelp.  2018. Targeted quantitative profiling of metabolites and gene transcripts associated with 4-aminobutyrate (GABA) in apple fruit stored under multiple abiotic stresses.  Hort. Res. (accepted, in press)  doi: 10.1038/s41438-018-0069-3 Casamali, B., J.G. Williamson, A.P. Kovaleski, S.A. Sargent and R.L. Darnell. 2016. Mechanical Harvesting and Postharvest Storage of Two Southern Highbush Blueberry Cultivars Grafted onto Vaccinium arboreum Rootstocks. HortScience 51:1503-1510. DOI:  10.21273/HORTSCI11323-16 Chopra, S. and R. Beaudry. 2016. Solar evaporative cooled storage structures for storage of fruits and vegetables. International Congress on Post-harvest Technologies of Agricultural Produce for Sustainable Food and Nutritional Security, Nov. 10-12, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India (abstract). Chopra, S. and R. Beaudry. 2016. Thermal analysis of evaporative cold rooms. International Congress on Post-harvest Technologies of Agricultural Produce for Sustainable Food and Nutritional Security, Nov. 10-12, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India (abstract). Chopra, S. and R. Beaudry. 2017. Evaporatively cooled rooms for storing perishables: designs to accommodate solar powered refrigeration. Great Plains Growers Conference, Jan. 12-14, Missouri, USA (abstract). Chopra, S. S. Dhumal, P. Abeli, R. Beaudry, E. Almenar. 2017. Metal-organic frameworks have utility in adsorption and release of ethylene and 1-methylcyclopropene in fresh produce packaging. Postharvest Biol. Technol. 130:48-55. Chopra, S., N. Mueller, R.M. Beaudry. 2017. Innovative evaporatively-cooled solar-refrigerated structures for storage of perishables in India. American Society for Horticultural Science, Sept. 16-20, Kona, HI, (abstract). Chopra, S., S. Dhumal, P. Abeli, R. Beaudry, E. Almenar. 2017. Metal-organic frameworks can sorb, store and release ethylene and 1-methylcyclopropene. American Society for Horticultural Science, Sept. 16-20, Kona, HI, (abstract). Chowdhury, M.G.F, J.K. Brecht, M.A. Ritenour, and C.A. Sims. 2018. Improving postharvest quality retention of oranges during ambient storage using hot water immersion and fruit coating: the role of internal modified atmosphere. Acta Hort. 1194: 313-320 (Proc. VIII Intl. Postharvest Symp., July, 2016) Cliff, M.A. and Toivonen, P.M.A. 2017. Sensory and quality characteristics of Ambrosia apples in relation to harvest maturity and storage conditions. 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Non-destructive prediction of soluble solids and dry matter content using NIR spectroscopy and its relationship with sensory quality in sweet cherries. Postharvest Biology and Technology, 128, 112-120. Escribano, S., Sugimoto, N., Macnish, A. J., Biasi, W. V., & Mitcham, E. J. (2017). Efficacy of liquid 1-methylcyclopropene to delay ripening of ‘Bartlett’ pears. Postharvest biology and technology, 126, 57-66. Evans, S.F. Beebe, M, Mahmood, M, Janthachotikun,S, Eldoumi H, Peterson, S, Payton,M, Garth M. Sanewski, Duane P. Bartholomew and Robert E. Paull, 2018, The Pineapple 2nd Edition Botany, Production and Uses. 336 pages, CABI, United Kingdom Gong, Y., Song, J., Du, L., Vinqvist, M., Campbell, L., Fillmore, S., Pang, X. and Zhang, Z. 2018. Characterization of laccase from apple fruit during postharvest storage and its response to diphenylamine and 1-methycyclopropene treatments. Food Chemistry. 253:314-321. doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2018.01.142. Guimarães, G.H., R.L. Dantas, A.S. 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Elwell, and R. Moran. 2018.  Fruit quality and consumer acceptability of three plum types and 14 plum cultivars grown in Maine for a local market.  HortTechnology 28:230-238. Nham, N. T., Macnish, A. J., Zakharov, F., & Mitcham, E. J. (2017). ‘Bartlett’ pear fruit (Pyrus communis L.) ripening regulation by low temperatures involves genes associated with jasmonic acid, cold response, and transcription factors. Plant Science, 260, 8-18. Nham, N. T., Willits, N., Zakharov, F., & Mitcham, E. J. (2017). A model to predict ripening capacity of ‘Bartlett’pears (Pyrus communis L.) based on relative expression of genes associated with the ethylene pathway. Postharvest Biology and Technology, 128, 138-143.             Paudel, J. R., Song, J., Maximme, I., Aharoni, A., Tai, H. Pathogen and pest responses are altered in Glycoalkaloid Metabolism 4 RNAi Solanum tuberosum. 2017. Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions. Vol.30 (11): 876–885. https://doi.org/10.1094/MPMI-02-17-0033-R. Paull, R. E., D. P. Bartholomew & C-C Chen. 2017. Pineapple breeding and production practices. pg 16 - 38. In. Lobo, M. G. and R. E. Paull. Handbook of Pineapple Technology. Production, postharvest science, processing and nutrition. Wiley Blackwell, West Sussex, United Kingdom. Paull, R. E., N. J. Chen & P. Saradhuldhat. 2017.Pineapple harvesting and postharvest handling. pg 89 - 107. In. Lobo, M. G. and R. E. Paull. Handbook of Pineapple Technology. Production, postharvest science, processing and nutrition. Wiley Blackwell, West Sussex, United Kingdom. Perkins-Veazie, P. 2017.  Postharvest storage and transport of blackberries.  In: Blackberries and their Hybrids, CAB Intl, pp. 266-282. Razali, N.A., S.A. Sargent, A.D. Berry, and J.K. Brecht. 2017. Harvest maturity affects fruit quality and postharvest behavior of red-fleshed pitaya fruit (Hylocereus costaricensis). Proc. Florida State Hort. Soc. 130:185-190. Robert E. Paull and Ching-Cheng Chen, 2018. Postharvest Physiology, Handling, and Storage of Pineapple. In Garth M. Sanewski, Duane P. Bartholomew and Robert E. Paull, (Editors), The Pineapple 2nd Edition Botany, Production and Uses. 336 pages, CABI, United Kingdom. Robert E. Paull, Nancy Jung Chen, Ray Ming, Ching Man Wai, Neil Shirley, Julian Schwerdt and Vincent Bulone. 2016. Carbon Flux and Carbohydrate Gene Families in Pineapple. Tropical Plant Biology 9, 200-213 Robert VanBuren, Margot Paris, Hongye Zhou, Jennifer Wai, Jisen Zhang, Lixian Huang, Hao Wang, Teh-Yang Hwa, Shu-Min Kao, Jae Young Choi, Zhenyang Liao, Zhicong Lin, Anupma Sharma, Ratnesh Singh, Jian Song, Lulu Wang, Won C. Yim, John C. Cushman, Robert Paull, Tracie Matsumoto, Yuan Qin, Qingsong Wu, Jianping Wang, Qingyi Yu, Jun Wu, Shaoling Zhang, Peter Boches, Chih-Wei Tung, Geo Coppens d'Eeckenbrugge, Garth M. Sanewski, Michael D. Purugganan, Jeffrey L. Bennetzen, Christian Lexer, Ray Ming. 2018. Sexual recombination and selection during domestication of clonally propagated pineapple. Available at SSRN: <a href="https://ssrn.com/abstract=3155832">https://ssrn.com/abstract=3155832</a>. Sargent, S.A., A.D. Berry, J.K. Brecht, M. Santana, S. Zhang, and N. Ristow.. 2017. Studies on quality of southern highbush blueberry cultivars: Effects of pulp temperature, impact and hydrocooling. XI Intl. Vaccinium Symposium. April 10-14, 2016. Orlando, FL. Acta Hort. 1180:497-502. DOI 10.17660/ActaHortic.2017.1180.70 Siddiq, M., J.K. Brecht, and J.S. Sidhu (eds.). 2017. Handbook of Mango Fruit: Production, Postharvest Science, Processing Technology and Nutrition. Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Co., Ames, Iowa. Siddiq, M., K. Dolan, P. Perkins-Veazie, J.K. Collins. 2018. Effect of pectinolytic and cellulytic enzymes on the physical, chemical, and antioxidant properties of blueberry juice.  LWT International 92:127-132. </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Schneider, KR, J De, Y Li, A Sreedharan, R Goodrich-Snyder, MD Danyluk, DM Pahl, CS Walsh, J Todd-Searle, DW Schaffner, W Kline and RL Buchanan.  2017.  Food Control.  73:511-517. Smith, J. C., Biasi, W. V., Holstege, D., & Mitcham, E. J. (2018). Effect of passive drying on ascorbic acid, α‐tocopherol, and β‐carotene in tomato and mango. Journal of food science, 83(5), 1412-1421. Takeda, F., W.Q. Yang, C. Li, A. Freivalds, K. Sung, R. Xu, B. Hu, J. Williamson and S. Sargent. 2017. Applying New Technologies to Transform Blueberry Harvesting. Agronomy 7(2):33; doi:10.3390/agronomy7020033 Tiyayon, Chantalak and Robert E. Paull. 2017. Mango Production. pp 17 - 35. In. Handbook of Mango Fruit: Production, Postharvest Science, Processing Technology and Nutrition. M. Siddiq (Ed), J. K. Brecht & J. S. Sidhu (Assoc. Eds.). Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford, UK. Toivonen, P., Batista, A. and Lannard, B. 2017. Development of a predictive model for ‘Lapins’ sweet cherry dry matter content using a visible/near infrared spectrometer and its potential application to other cultivars. Canadian Journal of Plant Science. 97: 1030–1035. dx.doi.org/10.1139/cjps-2017-0013 Tran, D, R.M. Beaudry. 2017. Multiple applications of 1-MCP in air storage as an alternative to CA storage for ‘Honeycrisp’ apple. American Society for Horticultural Science, Sept. 16-20, Kona, HI, (abstract). Tran, D., R.M. Beaudry. 2017. Controlling CO2 Injury in Honeycrisp and Empire with diphenylamine (DPA). Vietnam Educational Foundation meeting, Feb. 11, Phoenix, AZ, (abstract). Wallis, A., Harshman, J., Butler, B., Price, D., Fazio, G., Walsh, C. 2017. Performance of Geneva® apple rootstock selections with ‘Brookfield Gala’ and ‘Cripps Pink’ on a tall spindle system. Journal of American Pomological Society. 71(3): 137-148. Wehner, T.C., R. Naegele, and P. Perkins-Veazie.  2017.  Heritability and genetic variance components associated with citrulline, arginine, and lycopene content in diverse watermelon cultigens.  HortScience 52: 936-940 Xu, Y, T Ma, NP Howard, C Chen, CBS Tong, G Celio, JR DeEll, RE Moran. 2017. Microstructure of soft scald in ‘Honeycrisp’ apples. J Amer Soc Hort Sci 142:1-6. doi: 10.21273/JASHS04250-17. Zarei, A., C.J. Brikis, V.S. Bajwa, G.Z. Chiu, J.P. Simpson, J.R. DeEll, G.G. Bozzo, and B.J. Shelp. 2017. Plant glyoxylate/succinic semialdehyde reductases: comparative biochemical properties, function during chilling stress, and subcellular localization.  Frontiers in Plant Sci. 8: 1399, 13 pp.  doi: 10.3389/fpls.2017.01399 Zhang, X., Fang, F., He, Q., Zhang, X., Shi, N., Song, J., Zhang, Z. and Pang, X. 2017. Enzymatic Characterization of a Laccase from Lychee Pericarp in Relation to Browning Reveals the Mechanisms for Fruit Color Protection. Journal of Food Processing and Preservation. Doi:10.1111/jfpp.13515. Zheng, X. and J.K. Brecht. 2017. Oxalic acid treatments, 35-49. In: S. Pareek (ed.). Novel Postharvest Treatments of Fresh Produce. CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group, Boca Raton, Fla. Zhou, X., Gao, H., Mitcham, E. J., & Wang, S. (2018). Comparative analyses of three dehydration methods on drying characteristics and oil quality of in-shell walnuts. Drying Technology, 36(4), 477-490. Zoffoli, J.P., P. Toivonen and Y. Wang. 2017. Postharvest Biology and Handling for Fresh Markets, pp. 460-484. In: Quero-Garcia, J., Lezzoni, A., Pulawska, J. and Lang, G. (eds), Cherries: Botany, Production and Uses. CABI, Wallingford, UK. ISBN-13: 978-1780648378.     Presentations Bartz, J.A. (Presenter), D. Spiceland, M.T. Elkahky, A. Berry, S. Sargent, and G. E. Vallad: “Control of Rhizopus Rot of Tomato Fruit by Postharvest Fungicide Application.” Annual Meeting American Phytopathological Society. 5-9 August, 2017. APS / 572-P. (poster) Brecht, J.K.  (Presenter): “Fresh-cut Quality Issues Regarding Cell Integrity, Translucency & Juice Leakage.” Fresh-cut Short Course, Univ. Calif., Davis, 28 September, 2017. Brecht, J.K.  (Presenter): “Modified Atmospheres: Benefits and Risks to Fresh-cut Produce.” Fresh-cut Short Course, Univ. Calif., Davis, 27 September, 2017. Brecht, J.K.  (Presenter): “Ripening Mangos and Papayas”. Fruit Ripening & Retail Handling Workshop, Univ. Calif., Davis, 19 April, 2017. Brecht, J.K.  (Presenter): “Ripening Temperature Management”. Fruit Ripening & Retail Handling Workshop, Univ. Calif., Davis, 18 April, 2017. Brecht, J.K.  (Presenter): Banana, Mango, Pineapple, Citrus.” Fresh-cut Short Course, Univ. Calif., Davis, 28 September, 2017. Brecht, J.K. (Presenter), Anne Plotto, Elizabeth A. Baldwin, Jinhe Bai, Carlos Crisosto and Gayle Crisosto: “Sensory quality of fresh-cut mango at the consumer level sampled through the year.” Florida State Horticultural Society Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL, 5 June, 2017. Brecht, J.K. (Presenter): Mango Internal Discoloration. National Mango Board Extension Workshop and Outreach Meeting. Guayaquil, Ecuador, 27 July, 2017. Brecht, J.K. (Presenter): “New Technology in Postharvest Plastic.” American Society for Horticultural Science Annual Meeting, Waikoloa, HI, 21 September, 2017. Carnelossi, M.A.G. (Presenter), J.K. Brecht, D.J. Huber, L.M. De Carvalho, and S.A. Sargent: “Vacuum Infusion of Pectin Methylesterase and Calcium Maintain Firmness of the Fresh-cut Strawberry Slice.” 1º Congresso Luso-Brasileiro de Horticultura. 1-4 November 2017. Lisbon, Portugal. CS Walsh, AE Bissett, and KW Hunt 2018. Evaluating Possible Indicators for Fruit Storage Ability of Honeycrisp Apples.  ASHS Meeting, Washington DC. (First prize – Undergraduate Student Poster Competition) De, J. (Presenter), A. Sreedharan, Y. Li, A. Gutierrez, S. Sargent, and K. Schneider: “Comparison of Forced-Air Cooling and Hydrocooling on the Microbial Quality Control of Florida Blueberries.” Intl. Assn. for Food Protection. 9-12 July, 2017. Abstract #15283. (poster) De, J. (Presenter), B. Bertoldi, A. Gutierrez, J. Mohammad, S. Sargent and K. Schneider: “Effect of Postharvest Cooling on the Microbial Quality and Storage of Florida Peaches.” Intl. Assn. for Food Protection. 9-12 July, 2017. Abstract #15336. (poster) Guamán, F.J., S.A. Sargent (Presenter), J.K. Brecht, A.D. Berry and M. Santana: “Potential of Partial Cooling to Expand Handling Options for Fresh-Market Strawberry.” Florida State Horticultural Society Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL, 5 June, 2017. Razali, N.A. (Presenter), Steven A. Sargent, Adrian D. Berry, and Jeffrey K. Brecht: “Harvest Maturity Stage Affects Fruit Quality and Postharvest Behavior of Red-Fleshed Pitaya (Hylocereus costaricenses).” Florida State Horticultural Society Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL, 5 June, 2017. Razali, N.A., S.A. Sargent (Presenter) C.A. Sims, J.K. Brecht, A.D. Berry, and G. Chang: “Potential of Postharvest Coatings to Maintain Freshness of Red-Fleshed Pitaya (Hylocereus costaricenses).” American Society for Horticultural Science Annual Meeting, Waikoloa, HI, 20 September 2017. (poster) Rubio Ames, Z. (Presenter), J.K. Brecht, and M. Olmstead: “Impact of Different Nitrogen Rates on Peach Postharvest Attributes.” Florida State Horticultural Society Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL, 5 June, 2017. Rubio Ames, Z. (Presenter), J.K. Brecht, M.A. Olmstead, D.M. Tieman, H.J. Klee, and C.A. Sims: “Varietal and Seasonal Differences in Volatile Composition and Sensory Quality of Two Florida Peach Varieties.” American Society for Horticultural Science Annual Meeting, Waikoloa, HI, 20 September, 2017. Sargent, S.A. (Presenter): “Frutas e Hortaliças nos Estados Unidos: Tendências e Perspectivas.” “Fruits and Vegetables in the United States: Tendencies and Perspectives.” V Curso de Tecnologia Pós-colheita em Frutas e Hortaliças. V Course on Postharvest Technology of Fruits and Vegetables. Embrapa, National Instrumentation Laboratory. Sao Carlos, SP, Brazil. 28 August, 2017. Sargent, S.A. (Presenter): “Postharvest Handling of Blueberries for the Fresh Market.” Blueberry In-service Training Program. University of Florida. 26 April, 2017     Extension / Outreach Moran, R. and A. Myracle.  2017. New England Veg. and Fruit Conv.  Manchester, NH. Moran, R.  2018.  Maine Ag. Trades Show. Augusta, ME Sargent, S.A. and K.R. Schneider (Co-organizers) 2017 Florida Tomato Food Safety Workshop. September 5, 2017. Naples, FL. Sargent, S.A. (Organizer), J.K. Brecht, M.A. Ritenour and J.A. Bartz. Postharvest Quality and Food Safety of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables. Tabletop examples and materials demonstrating postharvest disorders, diseases and food safety training opportunities. AgExpo. Nov. 8, 2017. Citra, FL. Walsh, CS, AE Bissett, KW Hunt, TA Baugher, and NJ Young, 2018.  Monitoring and Utilizing Fruit Maturity to Improve Harvest and Storage Decisions of New Apple Cultivars and Reduce Storage Disorders of Honeycrisp.  Pennsylvania Fruit News.  98(1): 20-22.

Impact Statements

Pitaya growers and extension faculty were informed of these results and can choose to implement them to achieve longer shipping times with higher fruit quality.