<b>Handling and postharvest shelf life of ora-pro-nobis leaves

Resumo

The goal of this study was to assess the effects of hydrocooling and plastic bag use on the postharvest quality ora-pro-nobis (Pereskia aculeata Mill.) leaves stored at 5 and 25ºC. The experiments were conducted in a split plot scheme, with treatments in plots and subplots storage time in a randomized block design. The leaf chlorophyll content, mass loss (ML), relative water content (RWC), soluble sugars levels, reducings (RED), non-reducings and starch were determined. In leaves stored at 25ºC, the ML was higher when leaves were hydrocooled. The highest RWC resulted from the use of plastic bag, which prevented the leaves from wilting for a longer period of time. The soluble sugars levels varied according to the increase or decrease in RWC. The contents of RED decreased with the time of storage at 25°C. The cold storage increased the shelf life of ora-pro-nobis by 168 hours. The hydrocooling increased the RWC of leaves, although it did not influence the shelf life. The perforated plastic bag was effective in increasing the shelf life, and when associated with hydrocooling, the plastic bags provide a lower rate of loss of fresh mass.