Effects of Intermittent Warming and Prestorage Treatments (Hot water, Salicylic acid, Calcium chloride) on Postharvest Life of Pomegranate Fruit cv. ‘Shishe-Kab’ during Long-term Cold Storage

We examined the effectiveness of intermittent warming (IW), hot water (HW), salicylic acid (SA) and calcium chloride (CaCl2) on postharvest life of pomegranate fruit cv. ‘Shishe-Kab’ as well as extending fruit shelf life during cold storage (3°C). Fruit subjected to cycles of 1 d at 17 ± 1°C every 6 ds of storage at 3°C in IW condition. Pre-storage treatments were HW (50°C) for 3 min, SA (2mmol L-1) or a combination of SA (2 mmol L-1) and CaCl2 (2%) solutions for 3 min at 20°C. Weight loss was not affected by HW and chemical treatments, while firmness significantly decreased in HW-treated fruit when they were subjected to IW. The lowest unmarketable fruit was observed in fruit treated with a combination of SA and CaCl2, regardless of whether stored in cold storage (CS) or exposed to IW. Regardless of HW and chemical treatments, IW significantly and slightly increased shelf life and reduced fruit decay compared with the control. However, the highest fruit shelf life (19 wk) was obtained with a combination of HW, SA and CaCl2, compared with the control (11 wk), especially under long-term cold storage.