High effective peach fruit set results in an excessive amount of fruits, requiring thinning accomplishment, which is a manual practice and demands specialized labor, raising production costs. In this sense, chemical thinning may be an alternative to improve the peach production chain. The objective of this work was to evaluate the efficiency of 6-benzyladenine (BA) on chemical thinning and the effect of different BA dosages on peach production and color characteristics of 'Maciel' fruits. Treatments consisted of plants without thinning (Control), sprayed BA at doses of 100 mg L-1 , 200 mg L-1 and 400 mg L-1 , applied 45 days after full bloom (DAPF) and hand thinning at 45 DAPF. The applications of different dosages were carried out by spraying, using backpack spraying equipment. Percentage of thinning abscission, number of fruits per plant, yield per plant, fruit mass, color and average fruit diameter were evaluated. The doses of 200 and 400 mg L-1 BA for thinning increased the percentage of fruit abscission and fruit mass. The doses of 400 mg L-1 BA presented lower yield per plant, but fruits with higher average mass. Increasing BA dose reduced the number of fruits per plant. Hand thinning and 400 mg L-1 BA resulted peach fruits with larger diameter. BA application to thin peaches did not alter the fruit skin color. Therefore, BA may be a chemical thinning alternative for 'Maciel' peach cultivar, because it reduces the time of thinning in plants when compared to manual thinning. For an efficient chemical thinning with BA the product dose must be taken into account, along with climatic conditions and the cultivar.

Among the factors that affect peach productivity is the proper nutrition of plants, being nitrogen (N) one of the main nutrients for the crop. Thus, the objective of the current study was to evaluate the effect of nitrogen fertilization on macronutrient leaf contents, plant development and production of different genotypes of peach trees cultivated at high planting density, seeking to recommend the most appropriate concentration. The experiment was conducted between 2016 and 2018 using peach selections ‘Cascata 1513’ and ‘Cascata 1067’ and with nitrogen fertilization concentrations (0, 60, 120 and 180 kg ha-1 of N). Pruning mass, trunk diameter, number of fruits per plant, average fruit mass, yield per plant, yield per hectare and leaf macronutrients were evaluated. The increase of N concentration increases the N content in leaves. For the conditions of this experiment the maximum production per plant was obtained for the highest dose of 180 Kg ha of N.

O tempo que os pêssegos permanecem em temperatura ambiente após a colheita, pode comprometer a qualidade dos mesmos. A partir disso, o presente estudo, propôs-se avaliar diferentes períodos que compreende a colheita dos frutos e a sua submissão ao armazenamento refrigerado em relação à qualidade dos pêssegos ‘BRS Kampai’. Os tratamentos foram: T1: após 4 horas da colheita, os frutos foram armazenados em ambiente refrigerado; T2: após a colheita os frutos permaneceram por 24 horas em temperatura ambiente e após armazenados em ambiente refrigerado; T3: após a colheita os frutos permaneceram por 36 horas em temperatura ambiente e após armazenados em ambiente refrigerado. Os frutos permaneceram durante 10 e 20 dias em armazenamento refrigerado, seguidamente de dois dias a temperatura ambiente. As variáveis analisadas foram à perda de massa, firmeza, coloração da epiderme, teor de sólidos solúveis, pH e acidez titulável. Constatou-se que o período em que estes permanecem em temperatura ambiente antes de serem submetidos ao armazenamento refrigerado, influencia nas características de conservação e qualidade dos frutos. Com isso, a menor perda de massa e a maior firmeza, após o armazenamento, são observadas nos frutos que após quatro horas da colheita foram alocados no armazenamento refrigerado.

Resumo Kiwis minimamente processados necessitam de técnicas para manter a qualidade dos frutos durante a conservação e o período de prateleira. Aditivos combinados à radiação ultravioleta podem ser uma alternativa para assegurar a qualidade das frutas por mais tempo de conservação. Neste contexto, foi proposto avaliar a eficiência do uso da radiação UV-C e diferentes aditivos na prevenção do escurecimento e conservação de kiwis ‘Bruno’ minimamente processados. As fatias de kiwi foram submetidas a soluções contendo os seguintes tratamentos: controle, ácido ascórbico a 1%; isoascorbato de sódio a 1%; ácido cítrico a 1%, depois, utilizou-se por dois minutos a radiação UV-C na intensidade de 2,71 kJ m-2. As bandejas foram armazenadas em câmara fria a 4 ± 1 ºC de temperatura, com umidade relativa de 85% a 90%, e armazenadas por períodos de 3, 6 e 9 dias. Avaliaram-se perda de massa, coloração da polpa, sólidos solúveis, acidez titulável, incidência de podridão, compostos fenólicos totais e atividade antioxidante. O uso de aditivos melhora a conservação do kiwi minimamente processado, com destaque para o isoascorbato de sódio e o ácido cítrico. Os frutos de kiwi da cultivar ‘Bruno’ podem ser armazenados por até 6 dias sob refrigeração com o uso de aditivos. Após esse período, a perda de massa é elevada. O uso de UV-C não alterou a qualidade dos kiwis durante o armazenamento, podendo ter seu uso dispensado.

In cultivation of peaches, thinning is conventionally performed on fruits by hand, and needs to be done in a short time and with specialized labor, which increases the operational costs of this practice. Mechanical thinning can be an alternative to manual fruit thinning. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of mechanical flower thinning with different equipment in advanced peach orchard. The experiment was conducted in 2016 and 2017, combining advanced selections of peach trees and thinning methods. The evaluated variables were percentage of flowers thinning, thinning time, fruit number per plant, plant production, estimated yield, average fruit mass and fruit diameter class. Flower mechanic thinning alters the yield index of peach trees. Mechanical thinning on peach trees was efficient in flower thinning and reduced the practice execution time. Therefore, mechanical thinning is an alternative to the manual fruit thinning of peach trees.

Maceration is the step of the vinification process in which phenolic and aromatic compounds are transferred to wine. This study aimed at producing fine sparkling red wines by testing different grape varieties and maceration lengths. Grapes underwent maceration for 24 hours (Very Short Maceration -VSM) and for 48 hours (Short Maceration -SM). Sparkling wines were produced by the traditional method and analyses were carried out in the must, base wines and sparkling wines. Analyzes of minerals, volatile compounds and physicochemicals related to total soluble solids (TSS), Volatile Acidity (VA); Free Sulfur Dioxide (Free SO 2 ); Total Sulfur Dioxide (Total SO 2 ); Total Titratable Acidity (TTA); Fixed Acidity (FA); Hydrogenionic Potential (pH); Alcoholic Content (AC); Reduced Dry Extract (RDE); Total Tannins (TT); Total Anthocyanins (TA); Total Polyphenol Content (TPC); Total Color Intensity (TCI). In addition, during the tasting, a quantitative and descriptive record was distributed to the researchers to characterize the wines in relation to color, perlage, aroma, flavor, main descriptor of the aroma and main general adjective. The sparkling wines which had the best evaluations at different maceration lengths were the following: sparkling wine 100% Teroldego (SM) and sparkling wine 62.5% Teroldego, 18.75% Merlot and 18.75% Pinot (SM). Both short maceration (48 hours) and the Teroldego variety were the vinification parameters which provided the best olfactory-gustatory and color characteristics to the sparkling wines under study. All sparkling wines had enological potential to be vinified in red. Maturation and maceration processes under evaluation produced the typical freshness of sparkling wines and the desired red color.

A adubação do morangueiro é uma das principais práticas responsáveis pelo aumento da produção. Entretanto, ainda são insuficientes as informações sobre o efeito da omissão dos nutrientes minerais sobre o desenvolvimento do morangueiro. Neste contexto, o objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o crescimento dos morangueiros, visualizar os sintomas de deficiência nutricionais e os teores de nutrientes nas folhas decorrentes da omissão de macro e micro nutrientes. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o inteiramente casualizado, com dez tratamentos e três repetições. Os tratamentos constituíram-se de solução completa e omissão individual de cada um dos seguintes nutrientes: nitrogênio (N), fósforo (P), potássio (K), cálcio (Ca), magnésio (Mg), cobre (Cu), manganês (Mn), zinco (Zn) e ferro (Fe). Avaliou-se: a massa fresca e seca da raiz, da parte aérea e da coroa, número de folhas e coroas, teores de macro e micronutrientes nas folhas e sintomas visuais de deficiência nutricional. A massa fresca e seca da parte aérea, o número de coroa e o número de folhas são mais prejudicados pela ausência de macronutrientes. O desenvolvimento do sistema radicular do morangueiro é menor na omissão dos macronutrientes. Menores teores de N, P, K, Ca, Mg e Fe nas folhas de morangueiro ocorrem quando são realizadas omissão desses elementos

Nitrogen, which is considered the most important nutrient for peach trees, may interfere in both quantitative production characteristics and quality of fruits. This study aimed at evaluating the effect of the combination of doses of N fertilization and different periods of cold storage on physico-chemical and phytochemical characteristics of peaches in post-harvest. The experiment had a randomized complete block design in a 4x3 factorial scheme, i. e., four doses of fertilization (0, 60, 120 and 180 Kg N ha-1) and three periods of storage (on the harvest day, on both the 15th and the 30th storage days at 1±1ºC, each followed by a day of simulated commercialization at 20±1ºC). The following aspects were evaluated in fruits yielded by peach trees of the genotype Cascata 1067: fruit color, soluble solid content, titratable acidity, pulp firmness, mass loss, total phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity. Different periods of cold storage and doses of N fertilization were found to affect epidermis luminosity, pulp firmness and titratable acidity of fruits. Peaches may be stored at low temperatures for 15+1 days. After that, loss of fruit firmness increases. N fertilization affects neither the soluble solid content nor the epidermis color of peaches, but both parameters are influenced by storage. Values of phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity decrease when there is N increment in the soil and when longer storage is carried out. Results suggest that peach composition may be affected by cultural practices, such as N fertilization, in harvest and after storage.