EFFECT OF SOME PRE- AND POST-HARVEST TREATMENTS ON QUALITY AND STORABILITY OF FRESH GARLIC

Abstract

This investigation was carried out during the two successive seasons of 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 in the private farm at El-Burg Village, Naser (Bush), Beni-Suef Governorate, and Horticulture Research Institute, to evaluate the effect of potassium fertilizers in the form of potassium sulphate and potassium silicate (as a foliar application) in order to obtain large volumes of heads suitable for early export and evaluate the effect of different wrapping with LifeSpan sheet lining and Polypropylene sheet lining and coating with Chitosan at 0.5% and Active and Passive modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) as a post-harvest treatments at 3 plant ages (18, 20 and 22 weeks from planting date) on keeping quality of minimally processed green garlic during cold storage at 0±1 ºC. The used cultivar was "Balady", the favorite for exporting at immature stages. The exportable amount of green garlic can be increased in early February (plant age 18 and 20 weeks) with applying fertilization treatment (50 kg / fed Potassium Sulfate + 4 ml/L Potassium Silicate as a foliar application (T1), Garlic plant growth, total yield and its components as well as keeping quality of bulbs were significantly increased by increasing the applied Potassium Silicate-levels. Results may be ascribed to the effect of foliar spray with Potassium Silicate on enhancing the photosynthetic efficiency. The age of 22 and 20 weeks in LifeSpan sheet lining can be stored at 0±1 ºC and 90-95 % RH for 4 weeks with reduce weight loss and decay bulbs, hold more TSS, dry matter, total sugar and total pungency and maintained high visual quality. Green garlic bulbs can be stored in LifeSpan as passive modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) as an alternative to active MAP for ease of use, with no significant differences between them. Passive MAP with LifeSpan bags (T5) was the best treatment where reduce weight loss and decay bulbs percentage and hold more TSS, dry matter, total sugar and total pungency and maintained high visual quality score.