ISHS Acta Horticulturae 368: International Symposium on Postharvest Treatment of Horticultural Crops
EFFECT OF TEMPERATURE AND LIGHT ON THE TEXTURE OF STORED WHITE ASPARAGUS SPEARS |
| Authors: | A.S. Siomos, E. Sfakiotakis, C. Dogras |
| Abstract:
White asparagus spears (Asparagus officinalis L.) of the double hybrid Larac were stored for 6 days in air at 2.5, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 °C under continuous fluorescent light or in the dark. Fiber content and toughness measured at 7 (apical segment), 14 (middle segment) and 21 cm (basal segment) from the tip were determined. Most of the total variance was due to the storage duration; temperature and the interaction between temperature and storage duration also contributed significantly to the total variance. The fiber content as well as the toughness in the apical segment and the toughness in the middle segment increased during the 6 days of storage at temperatures above 2.5 and 5 °C, respectively. There was no change in toughness in the basal segment as the temperature increased. Over the 6-day storage the apical segment showed the highest relative rate of toughening. Between 10–20 °C the spears stored in the dark had more fiber than the spears stored under light. At low temperatures (< 10 °C) the apical segment of the spears stored in the dark was tougher; however, the opposite was observed at high temperatures (> 15 °C). | |
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