Influence of Ethephon and a Surfactant on Ripening of Harvested Tomato Fruit

The objective of the research was to determine the optimal concentration of ethephon treatment on anticipation of ripening in harvested tomato fruits. Mature-green fruits of cv. Santa Clara were sprayed with 0, 1000, 2000, and 3000 mg/L ethephon solution. In another set of experiments, the fruits were sprayed with 0, 500, and 1000 mg/L ethephon solution containing 1.0% surfactant (Dytrol) or not. The visual color and firmness changes during ripening at 24.1°C and 81.3% relative humidity were evaluated. Concentrations of 1000, 2000, and 3000 mg/L ethephon had similar effect on the anticipation of fruit ripening. The use of 500 mg/L ethephon delayed the fruit color changes when compared with the treatment of 1000 mg/L ethephon; however, firmness changes were nonsignificantly affected ( P = 0.05). Treatment with 1000 mg/L ethephon hastened the color changes by 3 days when compared with control fruits, but no difference on color intensity was observed after 12 days. The use of 1.0% surfactant mixed to ethephon caused slight delay on color changes; therefore, 1000 mg/L ethephon solution in absence of surfactant was more efficient in hastening tomato ripening.