evaluation of qualitative characteristics in kiwifruit cv. hayward harvested from different regions of guilan province during two month cold storage

abstract having no exact knowledge of most appropriate harvesting time in kiwifruit grown in different regions of guilan province, as well as the low storage longevity of the fruits are the most important factors causing considerable reduction in both marketability and export affairs. in this study, the influence of fruit quality in term of harvesting time on the postharvest quality and food values of kiwifruit (actinidia delicious cv. hayward) was investigated. based on the farmer’s experiences for each region, the harvesting time is chosen and fruits are harvested. fruits are sorted and healthy ones are promptly stored at 0.5° c and relative humidity of 85-90% for two months. results showed that the harvested fruits in most regions had no minimum maturity index at harvest time and usually are much more precociously harvested. only those fruits with high total soluble solid (tss) at harvest time could reach to an acceptable amount (more than 12.5 percent) of tss after two months storage and also had less loss weight (p<0.01) than ones grown on regions harvested earlier. the internal quality of fruits at harvest time and through storage was significantly correlated with tss at harvest time. harvested fruits with high tss had higher amount of ascorbic acid, total phenol and antioxidant capacity at both pre and post of storage. in general, late harvesting of kiwifruits in order to reach to minimum maturity index in most regions of guilan provinces, could improve fruit quality and also increases the shelf life.