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Common food preservative agents were evaluated in in vitro tests for their antifungal activity against Monilinia fructicola, the most economically important pathogen causing postharvest disease of stone fruits. Radial mycelial growth was measured in Petri dishes of PDA amended with three different concentrations of the agents (0.01-0.2%, v/v) after 7 days of incubation at 25 °C. Thirteen out of fifteen agents tested completely inhibited the radial growth of the fungus at various concentrations. Among them, ammonium carbonate, ammonium bicarbonate and sodium bicarbonate were the most effective while sodium acetate and sodium formate were the least effective. The effective agents and concentrations were tested as ingredients of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC)-lipid edible coatings against brown rot disease on plums previously inoculated with M. fructicola (curative activity). 'Friar' and 'Larry Ann' plums were inoculated with the pathogen, coated with stable edible coatings about 24h later, and incubated at 20 °C and 90% RH. Disease incidence (%) and severity (lesion diameter) were determined after 4, 6, and 8 days of incubation and the 'area under the disease progress stairs' (AUDPS) was calculated. Coatings containing bicarbonates and parabens significantly reduced brown rot incidence in plums, but potassium sorbate, used at 1.0% in the coating formulation, was the most effective agent with a reduction rate of 28.6%. All the tested coatings reduced disease severity to some extent, but coatings containing 0.1% sodium methylparaben or sodium ethylparaben or 0.2% ammonium carbonate or ammonium bicarbonate were superior to the rest, with reduction rates of 45-50%. Overall, the results showed that most of the agents tested in this study had significant antimicrobial activity against M. fructicola and the application of selected antifungal edible coatings is a promising alternative for the control of postharvest brown rot in plums.

11'Rojo Brillante' is currently the most important persimmon cultivar in Spain. The incidence 12 and etiology of postharvest diseases affecting this cultivar were determined under local 13 conditions. Latent and wound pathogens were assessed for two consecutive seasons on 14 commercially grown persimmons from two orchards. Healthy persimmons were either 15 surface-disinfested or artificially wounded on the rind and placed in humid chambers at 20 16 or 25ºC for up to 9 weeks. Additionally, decay was assessed on commercially handled 17 persimmons stored at 1ºC for up to 20 weeks. In all cases, the most frequent disease was 18 alternaria black spot (ABS) caused by Alternaria alternata and an ABS severity index 19 specific for 'Rojo Brillante' persimmons was established. Other minor pathogens causing 20 latent infections, mostly stem-end rots, included Botrytis cinerea, Lasiodiplodia 21 theobromae, Neofusicoccum spp., Pestalotiopsis clavispora, and Colletotrichum 22 Palou et al. Plant Dis. harm to fruit quality. This deastringency procedure, based on the application of carbon 41 dioxide (CO 2 ) concentrations as high as 95-98% at 20ºC for 24 h (Arnal and del Río 2003) 42allows Spanish persimmon to be commercialized with a crisp texture that has been accepted 43 by major export markets (EU countries such as Germany,

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