Fruit and seed quality of okra [Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench]as influenced by harvesting stage and drying method

Abstract

The influence of harvesting stages and drying methods on fruit and seed quality of okra [Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench.] cultivar Asontem was studied to determine the optimum stage of harvest and suitable drying method. The fruit length and diameter progressively increased and reached its peak at 30 days after anthesis by recording 9.50 and 2.83cm respectively and subsequently decreased slightly. The higher seed moisture content (46.5%) was obtained at the early harvesting stage (10 day after anthesis (DAA) and decreased to as low as 22.1% at 50 DAA. Seed maturation and quality parameters were highly significant (p=0.05) at different harvesting stages. Maximum seed dry weight (4.1 g) occurred at 40 DAA regardless of the drying method. Maximum standard germination (77.0%) occurred at 50 DAA when seed moisture content was lowest (22.1%). The optimum stage for harvesting fruit of okra cultivar Asontem for high seed germinability was found to be 40 days after anthesis, followed by shade drying fruits before seed extraction.

Fruit and seed physiological quality changes during seed development and maturation in African eggplant (Solanum aethiopicum L.)

“…Harrington (1972) had hypothesized and later supported by Ellis (2019) that maximum seed quality was attained at physiological maturity (PM), after which deterioration started and seed germination and vigour declines. This view has been observed for okra (Demir and Ermis, 2005;Bortey and Dzomeku, 2016), selected S. aethiopicum spp. (Tetteh et al, 2021) and A. edulis fruits (Kaiser et al, 2016).…”

“…During seed development, the maximum seed germination may coincide with the maximum dry matter accumulation that characterizes physiological maturity or mass maturity (TeKrony and Egli, 1997) as observed for okra (Demir and Ermis, 2005;Bortey and Dzomeku, 2016), selected Solanum aethiopicum species (Tetteh et al, 2021) and Allophylus edulis fruits (Kaiser et al, 2016). Other studies have also reported that maximum seed germination may not coincide with maximum dry matter accumulation as reported for tomato (Borges et al, 2019), pepper (Ruiz and Parera, 2017), safflower (Ramos et al, 2021) and eggplant (Demir et al, 2002).…”

“…It could also be due to harvesting and extracting seeds that are not matured. Although seed physiological quality is genetically determined (Linkies and Leubner-Metzger, 2012;Yan et al, 2014), it is often influenced by factors such as fruit maturity stage at harvest and environment (Vidigal et al, 2011;Bortey and Dzomeku, 2016;Singkaew et al, 2017).…”

“…However, the stage of seed development and maturation at which seeds attain maximum quality and its association with fruit characteristics is subject of controversy. Several studies have demonstrated that there are variations among plant species and growing conditions in occurrence of maximum seed quality during development (Takac et al, 2015;Bortey and Dzomeku, 2016;Ribalta et al, 2017;Tetteh et al, 2021). Additionally, the quality of seed and its association with fruit maturation characteristics have been reported with varied conclusions (Demir and Ellis, 1992;Kortse et al, 2017;Tetteh et al, 2018).…”

MORPHO-ANATOMICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES OF OKRA (Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench var. 'Smooth Green') FRUIT AND SEED DURING DEVELOPMENT

“…The increments in fruit size every 3 days starting from 3 DAA until 9 DAA was approximately 60 mm for length and 5 mm for diameter signifying a rapid fruit elongation and expansion at the early stage of fruit development starting from fruit set th until the 9 day. Generally, fruit size tends to stabilize or even decrease at the end of the fructification process (Bortey & Dzomeku, 2016).…”