The effects of different temperature with different arrangement during storage on the shelf lif of red pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus)

Abstract

A study was carried out to determine the effect of different storage temperatures and different arrangements during storage of red pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus) to its shelf life. Pitaya fruit were arranged in three arrangements; standing vertically, upside down vertically and lying horizontally. Each arrangement was kept in two different storage temperatures which are ambient temperature (28 ° C) and cold room (4 ° C) for 15 days. The control fruits are kept in ambient temperature without speci fie arrangement. Assessments on weight loss, stem quality, the fruit quality, presence of rots on the fruit peel and the soluble solids concentration (brix value). These assessments were done for every three days. After 15 days, the result of this experiment have shown that the fruits which stored in cold room ( 4 ° C) with standing arrangement, upside down and lying arrangement gave significant different compared with other treatment in reducing the weight loss (significant different = 0.00) and maintaining green healthy stem (significant different = 0.016). From the observation of rots appearance, include blossom end rots (significant different = 0.007) and body rots (significant different = 0.004), it shows that these treatments gave no sign of rotting on the fruits pulp and thus maintaining the quality of fruits for at least 15 days of storage.