By Clint Thompson
Strawberry harvests are ongoing across the Southeast region. Growers need to be mindful of post-harvest fruit quality issues that can arise if not harvested and stored properly.
Penelope Perkins-Veazie, professor in horticulture science at N. C. State, highlighted during the Alabama Extension Commercial Horticulture Fruit School that strawberry storage life lasts between 5 to 18 days. Fruit should retain the glossy, lighter color with no decay, injury or bruising, and sepals are green, not wilted.
Growers should also understand the preferences of their consumers.
“It depends a little bit, too, about what your consumers think. I prefer (my strawberries) to be darker, because I feel they’re going to taste better. Some people think it’s too overripe. You have to know a little bit about your market and your market preference. Some people may not care, they just want fresh strawberries,” Perkins-Veazie said.
“The other thing to remember is what you generally start to see is mold. Gray mold or botrytis is your No. 1 problem in storage. It’ll start to grow on one strawberry and then start to grow on the next strawberry that’s in contact with it. This can happen pretty quickly, especially if these guys are not kept below 40 degrees Fahrenheit. It can happen in like 2 to 3 days.”
Producers can also determine strawberry freshness by looking at the sepal, or the green leaflike structure.
“They start to wilt and will eventually turn brown,” she added. “You want that nice bright contrast of green to red”
