Effect of washing method and storage temperature on quality and shelf life of winter squash

Abstract

An experiment was conducted at the Postharvest Technology Division Laboratory, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute, Gazipur, Bangladesh, during 10 January 2020 to 10 March 2020 to find out the suitable storage temperature for winter squash (Cucurbita pepo) and extend its shelf life. The experiment comprised two sets of treatments viz., washing methods consisting of tap water washing (W₁) and chlorinated water washing (W₂), and four storage temperature composed of control room temperature; 25±2 ºC (T₁); 8±0.5 ºC (T₂); 12±0.5 ºC (T₃) and 16±0.5 ºC (T₄). The experiment was carried out in a Completely Randomized Design with three replications. For chlorinated water wash (120 ppm chlorine) was used which was prepared from sodium hypochlorite. The variety ‘BARI Squash-1’ was used in this experiment. The results showed that squash fruit stored in 8±0.5 ºC with chlorinated water wash had the highest firmness and vitamin C during the storage period (10-50 days at 10 days interval). However, squash fruits stored at 12±0.5 ºC with chlorinated water wash showed the maximum total soluble solid (TSS) during the storage. Shelf life was recorded maximum (57.33 days) from the combination of squash fruits stored in 8±0.5 ºC and chlorinated water wash which was statistically similar to the combination of squash fruits stored in 12±0.5 ºC and chlorinated water wash (55.33 days). It is concluded that chlorinated water wash using 120 ppm chlorine and storage temperature at 8 to 12 °C are suitable for storing squash fruits.

Bangladesh J. Agril. Res. 50(2): 141-155, June 2025