Effects of stage of harvest maturity and season on fruit quality of papaya cultivated in southeast Spain greenhouses

Papaya is an alternative crop of increasing interest for diversifying the crops cultivated in greenhouses of southeast Spain. The proximity to European markets allows offering consumers with high eating quality papaya and competing with other exporting countries from South America. It is important to harvest fruits at the optimum maturity for export. In this investigation, we studied the effect of the maturity stage at harvest on fruit quality as well as the quality of fruits harvested at different times of the year. Fruits of 'BH-65' cultivated in greenhouse were harvested at three different maturity stages defined by their skin color (stage 1: fruit with up to 30% yellow color; stage 2: 50-60% yellow color; stage 3: 90-100% yellow color) and in three different periods of the year (March, June and September). Physico-chemical quality parameters (skin and pulp color, weight, pulp firmness, soluble solids (TSS) and titrable acidity) were determined at harvest and at 5, 10 and 15 days after storage at 12°C and 85% HR. Sensorial attributes (external appearance, odor, flavor and texture) were also evaluated in fruits that had reached edible firmness. Our results indicate that the maturity stages at harvest influenced fruit firmness and color but not TSS content and acidity. TSS was slightly higher in stage 2 and 3 fruits than in stage 1, although the difference was only significant in some dates. Regardless of the maturity stage at harvest, TSS did not vary during storage. Fruits harvested at stage 2 were best rated in sensory evaluations in both, external appearance and the overall evaluation of flavor and texture. Harvest time influenced fruit quality: September fruits tend to be lighter and with slightly higher TSS content than fruits harvested in other periods. We suggest that the fruits should be harvested at stage 1 for export and at stage 2 for domestic market.