International Journal of Horticulture, 2025, Vol.15, No.2, 51-60 http://hortherbpublisher.com/index.php/ijh 57 3.6 Shelf life days and marketable fruit% The data shows shelf life and marketable fruit % were significantly (p < 0.05) affected by GA3, CaCl2, and SA during the storage period (Figure 2). The fruits treated with T1, T6, and T9 extended the average shelf life to almost twice that of the control (15 days). Fruits treated with T1 (0.1% GA3) had the longest possible average shelf life of 29 days followed by those treated with T6 (CaCl2 1.5%) at 27 days and T9 (0.3 mM SA) at 24 days. In the same fashion, the results for marketable fruit% follow almost the exact pattern where T1, T6, and T9 have twice the amount of marketable fruit than in control (35.57%) i.e., 65.2%, 64.94%, and 64.74% respectively. Figure 2 Effect of different treatments on shelf-life and marketable fruit% 4 Discussion During ripening, fruits undergo significant changes in their carbohydrate composition and organic acids. The TSS content increases with the breakdown of starch and sugar accumulation with storage time, as observed in the study throughout the storage period. 0.1% GA3-treated tomatoes recorded the lowest TSS values, signifying the effectiveness of GA3 in delaying the ripening process. However, despite these variations in TSS values, ANOVA results indicate these differences are not statistically significant. This was similar to the study conducted by Bhattarai and Gautam (2009) and Senevirathna and Daundasekera (2010). Furthermore, Genanew (2013) also observed the corresponding insignificancy of CaCl2 to TSS of tomato fruits during storage and suggested it could be due to less reduction by volume in solids, unlike liquids and gases. Shafiee et al. (2010) results on strawberries reported no effects of salicylic acid on the TSS values. On the contrary, as the storage period increased, the TA values were observed to decrease. This could be due to the fruit's utilization of the acids for metabolic activities of living tissues, resulting in the depletion of organic acids during storage (Bhattarai and Gautam, 2009). When compared to the control, the values were much higher in the treated tomatoes. GA3 and CaCl2 were the most effective treatments for the maintenance of TA levels. In this regard, the view of Pila et al. (2010) is noteworthy that calcium-treated fruits had significantly higher retention of TA which might be due to the reduction of metabolic changes of organic acid into water and carbon dioxide. Furthermore, Singh and Patel (2014) also reported the supremacy of GA3 over other treatments including borax and KHCO3 for having the highest TA (1.05%) on the 6th day of storage. The ability of GA3 to maintain higher titratable acidity may be attributed to its role in suppressing ethylene biosynthesis and delaying ripening-related metabolic processes, also observed by Devkota et al. (2019) and Senjaliya et al. (2015) in tomato fruits. Ünal et al. (2021) also reported higher values of TA at 10 days in tomatoes treated with salicylic acid. These sugar levels and acidity are crucial for determining the quality and taste of tomato fruit, both in its raw state and when processed (Lambeth et al., 1964). The relationship between the acidity and soluble solids i.e., ‘Sugar acid ratio’ is taken as the measurement of fruit maturity rather than assessing the acidity or soluble solids individually (Gustavo et al., 2003). Gautam and Bhattarai (2006) stated that sugar/acid balance and the astringent
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