Effect of Post-Harvest Fungal Pathogens on Fruit Quality in Guava Cv. Allahabad Safeda

Fruits of guava cultivar 'Allahabad Safeda' at mature yellowish-green stage were collected from Allahabad fruit market. Nine post-harvest fungal pathogens were isolated from these fruits. Of these, two isolates with highest incidence, namely, Pestalosia psidii (fruit canker causing pathogen) and Gloeosporium psidii(anthracnose causing pathogen) were used in the study. Fruits inoculated with the pathogens and Control (a lot of fruits with no treatment) were stored at ambient temperature. The fruits were analyzed for various quality attributes at different storage intervals for upto 15 days. Data revealed that fruits in all the treatments showed a lower fruit-weight loss compared to the untreated fruits. TSS, acidity (%) and ascorbic acid content (mg/100g) were also found to decrease in relation to the Control at 5, 10 or 15 days of storage. The least PLW was recorded in Gloeosporium psidii-treated fruits, followed by those treated with Pestalosia psidii. But for the bio-chemical changes (also due to post-harvest fungi) Gloeosporium psidii-treated fruits had higher TSS, acidity (%) and ascorbic acid content (mg/100g) than Pestalosia psidii-treated fruits.