Effect of different concentrations of Ethephon on ripening and postharvest quality of banana (cv. Malbhog) in Chitwan district, Nepal

The present investigation on the effect of different concentrations of Ethephon on ripening and postharvest quality of banana (cv. Malbhog) in Chitwan district, Nepal, was conducted to find out the best concentration of Ethephon on ripening and quality parameters after harvest under ambient room temperature (28±5°C) and 64% RH. The experiment was laid out in Completely Randomized Design (CRD), which comprised five treatments: Control, Ethephon @200 ppm, Ethephon @400 ppm, Ethephon @600 ppm, and Ethephon @800 ppm replicated four times. Different postharvest parameters were recorded on alternate days for 9 days. The use of Ethephon @600 ppm and Ethephon @800 ppm was found more effective regarding banana ripening. On the 9th day after storage, firmness decreased significantly with ripening, with the lower firmness recorded in bananas treated with Ethephon @800 ppm (1.23 kg/cm²) and Ethephon @600 ppm (1.35 kg/cm²). Similarly, the highest pulp-to-peel ratio (3.71) was recorded with Ethephon @800 ppm. The maximum TSS (23.75 ˚Brix) was recorded in bananas treated with Ethephon @800 ppm, which was at par with the effect of other concentrations of Ethephon. TA also peaked in bananas treated with Ethephon @800 ppm (0.67%). Moreover, Ethephon significantly accelerated ripening, with bananas treated with Ethephon @800 ppm requiring only 5.50 days and Ethephon @600 ppm requiring 6.00 days. Thus, in this study, the respondent gave higher scores for bananas treated with Ethephon @600 ppm and @800 ppm, with better sweetness and flavour compared to the control.