ISHS Acta Horticulturae 512: XXV International Horticultural Congress, Part 2: Mineral Nutrition and Grape and Wine Quality
BITTER PIT PREDICTION IN APPLES THROUGH MG INFILTRATION |
| Authors: | Jorge B. Retamales, C. Valdes, David R. Dilley, L. León, V. P. Lepe |
| Keywords: | Physiological disorders, Ca nutrition, Mg nutrition, fruit internal quality, shoot length, prediction system, integrated bitter pit management |
| Abstract:
Bitter pit is the most important physiological disorder in apples, and can have marked impact on the quality and price of this commodity. Worldwide research has concentrated on its control, and pre- and post-harvest management and calcium application programs have been developed. But, if bitter pit control is to be improved, effective prediction methods must be used by the industry. In most apple-producing regions, growers and packers use fruit mineral analysis to predict bitter pit incidence, but this method has not been reliable, and alternative procedures have been developed. After 10 years of research both in Chile and USA, Mg infiltration of fruits has shown high bitter pit predictive capacity for different cultivars, locations, seasons and sampling dates. Its extensive commercial use in Chile for two seasons has confirmed its potential and shed light on future research needs. Mg infiltration, in combination with shoot length, is proposed as a preharvest predictive system for bitter pit in apples, that allows the development of both integrated control measures and marketing strategies for the fruit. | |
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