Variable chlorophyll fluorescence of apple skin during ripening and storage

Abstract

This paper considers the method of control over apple maturation in an orchard based on the photosynthetic activity measured by the variation of induction of chlorophyll fluorescence in the apple skin. It is shown that the highest information value is inherent to the shadow side of the apple fruit, where the variation of induction of chlorophyll shows the rate of apple maturity, whereas the photosynthetic activity on the sun side is minimal due to the almost complete absence of chlorophyll. During maturation in the orchard, there are seven-day periods related to endogenous physiological processes that take place in the fruit independently of external factors. The revealed mechanism will make it possible to develop the method for determination of optimum harvest date in the orchard as well as to control fruit ripening during storage at low temperatures.