INFLUENCE OF PRE- AND POST-HARVEST APPLICATION OF ETHEPHON (2-CHLOROETHYL PHOSPHONIC ACID) ON TOMATOES

1. ten days after fruit set,
2. mature green and
3. 30% fruit ripe stages hastened ripening, thus increasing marketable over unmarketable yield. Ethephon did not increase total yields. Application ten days after fruit set caused excessive defoliation, flower and fruit drop. Fruit analysis of treated plots showed slight increases in titratable acidity.

Dipping harvested mature green fruits into varying concentrations of ethephon (100, 250, 500 and 1000 ppm) hastened ripening by at least 4 days. Concentrations of 500 and 1000 ppm reduced the ripening time more than all other treatments.

Thirty seconds and one minute were also found to be optimum dipping times for earlier ripening. Titratable acidity and % total soluble solids were slightly increased by ethephon.

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