Progress 10/01/19 to 09/30/20
Outputs
Target Audience:This is a multistate project and collaborative and individual data have been shared at the annual project meeting, and when completed shared with the scientific community at large by way of presentations at national and international conferences and by publication in refereed journals. Within New York State, the primary audience is growers and storage operators who are dealing with the adoption of new storage technologies, as well as challenges associated with the occurrence of a number of physiological disorders that develop in fruit during storage. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?One PhD and two visiting scholars have contributed to this project. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Peer reviewed publications (2), grower article (1), conference proceedings (1 international; 4 national), and grower/storage operator webinars (3). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?The second year of the multistate evaluation of the passive method of bitter pit prediction will be completed and written up for publication as well as reported to the industry nationwide. Research will continue on the interactions between plant growth regulators, fruit maturity, and the responses of these fruit to controlled atmosphere and dynamic controlled atmosphere storage. Further understanding of how these pre- and postharvest factors affect fruit metabolism (goal 2) will continue with a focus on low oxygen responses.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The impact of the work in goal 1 has been very significant for the apple industry. Our work during this, and previous, years has been focused on developing a non-mineral based method to predict development of the physiological disorder bitter pit. This disorder causes thousands of dollars of loss to growers of the 'Honeycrisp' apple on an annual basis and is especially devastating as fruit go into storages free of any damage but can have as much as 100% disorder incidence after storage. Most methods have centered around mineral analyses, but these methods are not easily applied commrcially and require expensive equipment. We have adapted a simple method (passive) in which fruit samples are taken three weeks prior to commercial harvest dates and kept at room temperature. The incidence of bitter pit at this time correlates with its incidence after storage. We are continuing to develop this method to provide strategies to reduce postharvest losses, e.g. not use conditioning that is used to prevent soft scald development because it exacerbates bitter pit development. This research was originally carried out using NY and PA grown fruit but is now being tested by the multistate partners across North America. Other research being carried out under the auspices of this goal is directed towards understanding of the impact of preharvest plant growth regulators (aminoethoxyvinylglycine and 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP)) that are used for harvest management on fruit maturation and storage under air an controlled atmosphere storage conditions. Under goal 2, we have continued our studies on the biological mechanism that underpin development of storage disorders. Progress is being made in understanding the mechanism by which postharvest 1-MCP enhances a flesh browning disorder in the 'Empire' apple. This research is being used as a bais to understand a similar disorder that is causing major losses of 'Gala' apples and limiting storage potential. Goal 1: 'Honeycrisp' apple fruit are highly susceptible to development of soft scald and bitter pit during storage. However, the commercial postharvest treatment of conditioning fruit at 10?°C for 7 d before storage at 3?°C to reduce soft scald development can increase bitter pit incidence. Prediction of these physiological disorders would enable storage operators to modify management techniques to reduce fruit losses due to both disorders. To develop prediction tools, harvest indices and mineral concentrations of fruit were analyzed from orchard blocks in Pennsylvania (PA) for three years, the Hudson Valley region (HV) for four years, the Champlain region for two years, and Western New York (WNY) for five years. Fruit were stored at 3?°C, without or with conditioning, and stored for 2 - 5 months in 2013- 2017. Fruit were also stored at 0.5?°C without or with conditioning in 2013, 2015, 2016. Multivariate analysis described significant relationships that were different for unconditioned and conditioned fruit. In unconditioned fruit, bitter pit incidence was negatively correlated with increasing internal ethylene concentration (IEC) and starch pattern indices (lower starch content), positively with higher chlorophyll content as indicated by the index of absorbance difference and with all minerals except N, as well as mineral ratios. In conditioned fruit, bitter pit incidence was correlated negatively with IEC, Ca, and positively with firmness, and all mineral ratios. Soft scald incidence in fruit stored at 0.5?°C was positively correlated with IEC and firmness, and all fruit mineral ratios except N/Ca and P/Ca, and negatively with Ca and Mg. For conditioned and unconditioned fruit stored at 3?°C, harvest indices predicted 27-28 % and 21-26 % bitter pit, respectively, while minerals and mineral ratios predicted 22-55 % and 18-54 % bitter pit, respectively. Harvest indices predicted 29-57 % soft scald, while minerals and mineral ratios predicted 29-49 for % soft scald for fruit stored at 0.5?°C. Correlations of bitter pit against P, K, and Mg were higher, and Ca and all mineral ratios lower, in conditioned fruit stored at 3?°C as opposed to those stored unconditioned at 3?°C. Nonlinear iterative partial least square algorithms based on variable importance plots vs coefficients showed that the regression of determination was affected by postharvest treatment in relation to harvest indices, minerals and their ratios. A negative correlation of bitter pit incidence against soft scald incidence was found for a region with high bitter pit and soft scald development. Goal 2. Little information is known about metabolism of flesh browning disorders in apples after removal of fruit from cold storage. 'Empire' apples develop a firm flesh browning, a physiological disorder that is assumed to be a chilling injury because it occurs usually at 0.5?°C; however, incidence is increased in fruit at warmer storage temperatures (2-3?°C) if fruit have been treated with 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP). In this study, fruit were untreated or treated with 1-MCP and stored in controlled atmospheres at 0.5 or 3?°C for 40 weeks, followed by a 10 d shelf life period at 20?°C. The greatest increase of internal ethylene concentration (IEC) and softening occurred in the fruit that had been stored at 3?°C without 1-MCP, and the lowest in fruit from 0.5?°C plus 1-MCP. Flesh browning was present in 1-MCP treated fruit and in fruit stored at 0.5?°C at the time of removal, and low in fruit stored at 3?°C. Incidence and severity of the disorder in 1-MCP treated fruit stored at 3?°C increased greatly during the shelf life period. Electrolyte leakage was higher in 1-MCP treated fruit stored at 0.5?°C than in the other treatments. Polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity was higher in 1-MCP treated fruit regardless of storage temperature but peroxidase (POX) activity was higher in fruit that had been stored at 0.5?°C regardless of 1-MCP treatment. The highest POX activity was measured in the fruit that had been stored at 0.5?°C without 1-MCP treatment. Overall, browning development during the shelf life is associated with higher PPO activity in 1-MCP treated fruit and higher POX activity at the lower storage temperature.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2020
Citation:
Al Shoffe, Y., Nock, F.N., Baugher, T.A., Marini, R., Watkins, C.B. 2020. Bitter pit and soft scald development during storage of unconditioned and conditioned Honeycrisp apples in relation to mineral contents and harvest indices. Postharvest Biol. Technol. 160: 111044. doi.org/10.1016/j.postharvbio.2019.111044
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2020
Citation:
Saba, M.K., Watkins, C.B. 2020. Flesh browning development of Empire apple during a shelf life period after 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) treatment and controlled atmosphere storage. Scientia Hortic. 261: 108938. doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2019.108938
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2020
Citation:
Brizzolara, S., Manganaris, G.A., Fotopoulos, V., Watkins, C.B., Tonutti, P. 2020. Primary metabolism in fresh fruits during storage. Front. Plant Sci. 19. doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2020.00080
- Type:
Book Chapters
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2020
Citation:
Watkins, C.B. 2020. Cultivar effects on CA/MA requirements of fruits and vegetables. In. Controlled and Modified Atmospheres for Fresh and Fresh-Cut Produce. Chapter 2, p23-43. Gil, M.I., Beaudry, R. (Eds.) Elsevier, Academic Press, https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-804599-2.00003-X
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Al Shoffe, Y., Nock, J.F., Zhang, Y., DeLong, J., Watkins, C.B. 2019. Effect of delay with or without 1-MCP for CA and DCA-CF storage on fruit quality and physiological disorder development in apple fruit. HortScience 54(9): S127.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Watkins, C.B., Al Shoffe, Y., Nock, J.F. Zhang, Y. 2019. Harvista treatment effects on quality and storage disorders of Honeycrisp apples. HortScience 54(9): S127.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Awaiting Publication
Year Published:
2020
Citation:
Algul, B.E., Al Shoffe, Y., Park, D.S., Miller, W., Watkins, C. 2020. Harvista treatments enhance stress watercore loss in Jonagold apples during shelf life period. HortScience
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Awaiting Publication
Year Published:
2020
Citation:
Al Shoffe, Y., T�lin �z, A.T., Nock, J.F., Watkins, C. 2020. Ethanol and Acetaldehyde Accumulation and Physiological Disorder Development in 'Honeycrisp' Apples in Relation to Storage Temperature. HortScience
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Awaiting Publication
Year Published:
2020
Citation:
Cai, W., Park, D.S., Al Shoffe, Y., Watkins, C.B. Ethylene metabolism of Gala apples after 1-MCP and AVG treatments. HortScience
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Awaiting Publication
Year Published:
2020
Citation:
Park, D.S, Al Shoffe Y., Algul B.E.,, Shih-Ding Tsai, S.D., Cai, W., Watkins, C. 2020. metabolism of apple fruits during storage under low oxygen condition. HortScience
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Progress 10/25/18 to 09/30/19
Outputs
Target Audience:Target audiences are primarily apple growers, packers and shippers. Whilst this is a NY project, attendees at educational programs have included individuals from PA, MI, and Canada. The second audience is postharvest scientists from North America and internationally. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Transfer of information to the apple industry by way of Cornell Storage workshop. Discussion about main findings with peer groups. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?By publications (see outputs) and by formal extension vehicles. In this reporting year, specifically the Cornell Storage Workshop: Thursday, August 8, 2019. This workshop included multistate partners, Jennifer DeEll and James Mattheis, and included research results on: - Dynamic Controlled Atmosphere Storage - past, present and future - Gala maturity and storage issues - Honeycrisp maturity and storage issues - NY1 and NY2 update and recommendations What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Research in 2020 is focused on new cultivars, especially in relation to minimizing losses due to development of physiological storage disorders. The bitter pit prediction model is being tested nationwide by members of the multi-state. In addition, focus is centered on NY1 and NY2, in addition to Gala and Honeycrisp as well as other emerging cultivars, e.g. Evercrisp.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The NY contribution to the multistate in 2019 focused on objective 1: Adapt or develop harvest, handling and storage technologies to improve fruit quality, increase consumption and reduce food waste. The impacts relate to two specific approaches. The first is addressing the serious problem of development of storage disorders in several apple cultivars, especially at a time that the US apple industry is transitioning to new, more highly profitable cultivars. The second is the effects of preharvest plant growth regulators on fruit maturity and on related storage disorders. The impact of the first approach has been the adoption of the bitter pit prediction method by many growers as a means of reducing risk. We are developing strategies for the industry to use to mitigate losses based on the prediction models. The impact of the second approach is less direct as it contributes to a longer objective of learning how these plant growth regulators can best be used. In the first approach, the focus of research continues to be storage disorders, especially in relation to new cultivars. Significant progress has been made on prediction of bitter pit, a physiological disorder that can develop during storage and result in major economic losses of susceptible apple cultivars such as 'Honeycrisp'. Prediction methods to determine the risk of disorder development have focused primarily on mineral composition of the fruit, but there has also been interest in non- mineral based methods. We compared non-mineral methods with mineral analyses for bitter pit prediction. Fruit of 'Honeycrisp' were harvested three weeks before anticipated commercial harvest and at commercial harvest. Mineral contents in peel from the calyx-end were measured in fruit at both harvest times. In year 1, fruit were kept at 20°C (passive method), dipped in 2000 mg L-1 2-chloroethylphosphonic acid (ethylene method) or 0.8 M MgCl2 (Mg method). Treated fruit were then kept at 20°C for three weeks. At commercial harvest, fruit were stored at 0.5 or 3°C with and without 1 week of conditioning at 10 °C. in 2018/2019, only the passive method was used because of its simplicity. Fruit from the commercial harvest of 38 orchards in three growing regions were stored at 3°C after conditioning. Fruit were stored for four months, and assessed after 4 d at 20 °C. Multivariate analysis shows that the passive method for fruit harvested three weeks before the anticipated harvest had higher or similar correlations with the actual bitter pit after cold storage than those from minerals. In the second approach, the emphasis has been on the effects of preharvest plant growth regulators [aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG; ReTain) and Harvista (1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP; Harvista) alone or in combination with postharvest 1-MCP. In one study, effects on fruit quality and the incidence of physiological disorders during storage of 'Fuji' apples at 20 and 0.5°C were investigated. Harvista treatments were applied 4 or 10 days before harvest (DBH), and then fruit were either untreated or treated with postharvest 1-MCP (SmartFresh) postharvest. Fruit were stored at 20°C for up to 4 weeks or at 0.5°C for up to 36 weeks. At harvest, starch pattern indices and watercore incidence and severity were lower in fruit with preharvest 1-MCP treatment applied 10 DBH than in untreated fruit and in fruit treated 4 DBH. At 20°C, the combination of preharvest and postharvest 1-MCP treatments reduced the internal ethylene concentration (IEC) more than preharvest 1-MCP treatment alone, but not to a greater extent than postharvest 1-MCP treatment alone. Greasiness and watercore were reduced more by the combination of preharvest and postharvest 1-MCP treatments than by either treatment alone. However, preharvest and postharvest 1-MCP treatments, in combination or alone, did not consistently affect flesh firmness, titratable acidity (TA), soluble solids concentration, color a* values, or incidences of flesh browning, core browning, and stem-end flesh browning. At 0.5°C, the combination of preharvest and postharvest 1-MCP treatments inhibited IECs and maintained firmness and TA more than no treatment or preharvest 1-MCP treatment alone. However, there was a lesser extent of differences than there was with postharvest 1-MCP treatment alone. Incidences of physiological disorders were not consistently affected by the preharvest and post- harvest 1-MCP treatments. Overall, the results suggested that the preharvest 1-MCP treatment positively affected fruit quality attributes compared with no treatment during shelf life and long-term cold storage, but not as effectively as a combination of preharvest and postharvest 1-MCP treatments. In a separate study, 'McIntosh' and 'Empire' fruit were treated with ReTain at four weeks or two weeks, or with Harvista one week, prior to the anticipated first harvest date, to assess the effects of these chemicals on maturation and ripening in relation to starch degradation. Cultivar and timing of application influenced the efficacy of both plant growth regulators in delaying the increase of IEC and the starch pattern index (SPI), and the decrease of starch concentration, in the fruit. Little effect of treatment was found for the high ethylene producing 'McIntosh', with only the SPI being affected at the first harvest date. 'Empire' fruit from trees treated with ReTain and Harvista had lower IEC and were greener (higher absorbance difference index (IAD) values), and had lower SPIs and higher starch concentrations, but the effects were inconsistent and limited to only some harvest dates. In storage, only Harvista applied 10 d before harvest markedly slowed the increase in IEC and the rate of softening. ReTain treatment effects on IEC were intermediate, between the one week Harvista treatment and the untreated controls and 4 week Harvista treatment, while it did not affect softening. Treatments did not affect the rate of starch concentration loss during storage.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Al Shoffe, Y., Nock, F.N., Zhang, Y., Zhu, L., Watkins, C.B. 2019. Comparisons of mineral and non-mineral prediction methods for bitter pit in Honeycrisp apples. Scientia Hortic. 254:116-123. doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2019.04.073
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Doerflinger, F.C., Nock, J.F., Miller, W.B., Watkins, C.B. 2019. Preharvest aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG) and 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) effects on ethylene and starch concentrations of Empire and McIntosh apples. Scientia Hortic. 244:134-140. doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2018.09.031
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Lee, J., Cheng, L., Rudell, D.R., Nock, J. F., Watkins, C.B. 2019. Antioxidant metabolism in stem and calyx end tissues in relation to flesh browning development during storage of 1-methylcyclopropene treated Empire apples. Postharvest Biol. Technol. 149:66-73. doi.org/10.1016/j.postharvbio.2018.11.015
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Lee, J., Kang, I.K., Nock, J.F., Watkins, C.B. 2019. Effects of preharvest and postharvest applications of 1-methylcyclopropene on fruit quality and physiological disorders of Fuji Apples during storage at warm and cold temperatures HortScience 54(8):13751383; doi.org/10.21273/HORTSCI14062-19
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Tong, C.B.S., Beaudry R.M., Contreras C., Watkins, C., Nock, J., Vickers, Z., Baures, K., Luby, J., Bedford, D. 2019. Postharvest Performance of Minneiska apple, a Progeny of Honeycrisp. J. Am.Pomol. Soc. 73:82-94
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Nock , J.F., Doerflinger, F.C., Sutanto, G. Gunes, N. Al Shoffe, Y., Zhang, Y., Wright, H., DeLong, J., C.B. Watkins, C.B. 2019. Managing stem-end flesh browning, a physiological disorder of Gala apples. Acta Hort. Acta Hortic. 1256:163-168. DOI 10.17660/ActaHortic.2019.1256.23
- Type:
Book Chapters
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Watkins, C.B., Mattheis, J.P. 2019. Apple. In: Postharvest Physiological Disorders in Fruits and Vegetables. Chapter 8, p165-206. de Freitas,S.T., Pareek, S. (Eds.), CRC Press, ISBN 9781138035508
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