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Postharvest Pathology and Mycotoxins

Vulnerability of Stem-End Scars of Blueberry Fruits to Postharvest Decays. R. A. Cappellini, Professor, Department of Plant Biology, Agricultural Research Service, Food Science Building, Cook College, Rutgers-The State University, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08903; M. J. Ceponis, Research Plant Pathologist, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Food Science Building, Cook College, Rutgers-The State University, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08903. Phytopathology 67:118-119. Accepted for publication 16 August 1976. Copyright © 1977 The American Phytopathological Society, 3340 Pilot Knob Road, St. Paul, MN 55121. All rights reserved.. DOI: 10.1094/Phyto-67-118.

The principal locus of infection in harvested blueberry fruits was the stem scar. Ninety percent of all decays that developed in blueberries held for 2, 4, and 6 days at 21 C occurred at stem scars. The incidence of stem-end decay in stemless berries was 10-fold greater than in berries with their stems attached.