The effect of coatings with different concentrations of tamarind seed starch associated with pomegranate seed oil in ‘Paluma’ guava was investigated in the present work. The fruits were harvested from an orchard in the morning, packed in containers previously lined with paper, and transported to a laboratory, where they were selected, washed, sanitized, and separated at random for the application of each treatment. The experiment design used was completely randomized, in the 6 × 6 factorial scheme, six coatings and six evaluation periods, with 3 replicates made up of 2 fruits. The treatments were: T1 (control or reference sample), without coating; T2 (0.24 mL of pomegranate seed oil/mL of coating); T3 (2% tamarind starch); T4 (1% tamarind starch); T5 (2% of tamarind starch); T6 (3% tamarind starch), T4, T5 and T6 were associated with 0.24 mL/mL of the pomegranate seed oil. The treatments were applied under immersion of the fruits in the solutions and then stored in a refrigerated chamber at 10±2 °C and 80±5% RH, and the evaluations were performed at intervals of 3 days to 12 days of storage. Due to the maintenance of the quality of the fruits, and without sufficient material, it was decided to extend storage time until the 21 days. Thus, the analyses were performed at 0, 3, 6, 9, 12 and 21 days with evaluations at 0, 3, 6, 9, 12, and 21 days. The T6 treatment (3% tamarind starch + 0.24 mL/mL pomegranate seed oil) was more efficient regarding luminosity (L*) of the fruits and delaying color development , expressed by the values of C*, also showing the higher retention in the loss of firmness, lower mass loss and lower soluble solids content, suggesting that this treatment possibly inhibited the degradation of polysaccharides, delaying the ripening process of the fruits.

The leaf area is a parameter of fundamental importance in studies on plant growth and physiology. The objective of this study was to build allometric equations for the accurate and fast estimation of sapodilla leaf areas. In total, 250 leaves of different shapes and sizes were collected from sapodilla matrices trees growing at the Universidade Federal Rural do Semi-Árido, Mossoró-RN, Brazil. For each leaf, the length, width, product of length and width (LW), product of length and length, product of width and width, and leaf area were measured. Linear and nonlinear models were used to construct the allometric equations. The best equations were chosen on the basis of the following criteria: the highest coefficient of determination, Pearson’s linear correlation coefficient, and Willmott’s index of agreement; and the lowest Akaike information criterion and root mean square error. It was verified that the models that used the LW value presented the best criteria for estimating the leaf area. Specifically, the equations ŷ = 0.664 × LW1.018 and ŷ = 0.713 × LW, which use LW values, are the most suitable for estimating the leaf area of sapodilla quickly and accurately.

The initial development of pitayas may be limited by a few factors, among them, water deficit. Agricultural hydrogels can be used as an alternative to enhance the retention and availability of water and nutrients in the soil. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the influence of irrigation frequency and hydrogel doses on the development of white pitaya (Hylocereus undatus) seedlings to establish a time interval in days between irrigations that provides better seedling development and determine the hydrogel dose that provides a reduction of water consumption without damaging seedling development. The experimental design consisted of randomized blocks in a 4 x 4 factorial arrangement, in which the treatments corresponded to 4 hydrogel doses (0, 2, 4, and 6 g/plant of Biogel Hidro Plus) incorporated into the substrate and four irrigation frequencies (1, 3, 5, and 7 days of interval). The biometric characteristics, photosynthetic pigments, and organic and inorganic solutes of the plants were evaluated after 120 days. The use of daily irrigation negatively influenced the growth and biomass accumulation of the aerial part of the seedlings and, consequently, provided the lowest values of cladodes of the pitaya seedlings. Pitaya seedlings had greater development when using an irrigation frequency of around 3 days. The application of 6 g/plant of hydrogel provided the highest averages for accumulation of dry biomass, photosynthetic pigments, and organic and inorganic solutes at irrigation levels of 3.6, 4, and about 3.8 days of intervals, respectively. Hydrogel incorporation allowed increasing the interval between irrigations by 1 day without damages to the seedling development.

The commercialization of fresh fruits among distant regions requires the adoption of storage technologies to ensure product preservation. This study evaluates the effect of Spirulina platensiscoatings on the conservation of pomegranates (Punicagranatum L.) and defines the best concentration for the coating of these fruits. The experiment was carried out in a completely randomized design with three replications and two fruits per replicate. Treatments consisted of different concentrations of Spirulina platensis (0%, 1%, 2%, 3%, and 4%) added with0.5 mL L-1 of mineral oil. The fruits were stored at 24. and 60% RH, and evaluated after 15 days. The coating with 1% Spirulina platensis provided the best results, slowing color development, increasing brightness, maintaining sugars and ascorbic acid contents, and reducing astringency.

It is very challenging to the quality of the papaya culture’s fruits (Carica papaya L.) after the crop, especially due to their significance to the international market, that is, their elevated exportation demands. The purpose of this work was the application of biodegradable coatings composed of Scenedesmus sp. and Chlorella sp. associated or not with pomegranate seed oil in ‘Golden’ papaya and to evaluate their effect in the conservation powder-crop. The installation of the experiment was carried out in a completely randomized design, with a 6 x 6 factorial outline, that is, six concentrations (C: control; SO: 0.5% of Scenedesmus sp. + 0.3% of pomegranate seed oil; S: 0.5% of Scenedesmus sp.; CO: 0.5% of Chlorella sp. + 0.3% of pomegranate seed oil; CH: 0.5% of Chlorella sp.; O: 0.3% of pomegranate seed oil) and six evaluation periods (0, 3, 6, 9, 12, and 15 days), stored at a temperature of 18±2 °C with 60±5% RH with three repetitions of two fruits per portion. The use of coverings composed of Scenedesmus sp. and Chlorella sp. in association or not with pomegranate seed oil was proven efficient in the reduction of the breathing tax of ‘Golden’ papaya, delaying the ripening process, and therefore representing a promising alternative for these fruits’ powder-crop conservation. The coating composed of 0.5% of Chlorella sp. + 0.3% of pomegranate seed oil (CO) provided a better powder-crop conservation of ‘Golden’ papaya during 15 days of storage.