Essential oils affect the development of apricot brown rot during post-harvest storage

An Apricot is an important but highly perishable stone fruit. It suffers huge post-harvest losses mainly due to brown rot caused by Monilinia fructicola. The current study investigates the effect of essential oils (EOs) to reduce postharvest losses in apricot due to brown rot. The Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) analyses of the EOs were accomplished before testing them on apricots and different oil contents were assessed with their respective concentrations on the post-harvest longevity of the apricots. The study was designed in two phases. Initially, five different plant-based essential oils Lemon, Mint, Clove, Cinnamon, and Lavender were assessed In vitro against the mycelial growth of artificially inoculated M. fructicola. Oil concentrations were 0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, and 1% respectively. Mint and Clove oils maintained a minute microbial load (below 10 mm mycelial growth) and showed lower sensory acceptance toward M. fructicola which means that both oils were highly effective against M. fructicola. In the second phase of this study, apricot fruits were assessed for their decaying percentages during storage at 20 oC after oil treatment. Again, Mint, Lavender, and Clove oil maintained trifling fungal rot diameters (4, 2, and 6 mm respectively) and exhibited repudiation toward M. fructicola. Different concentrations of oils were tested during the study: however, the maximum oil concentration i.e. 1% proved suitable in each case for post-harvest preservation during storage to Monilinia fructicola. Major postharvest loss-preventing oils against brown rots in both experiments were Clove, Mint, and Lavender. The present study provides a baseline for the effective postharvest application of plant-based essential oils and temperature conditions during postharvest storage of apricot to reduce losses and increase their availability in distant markets.