Effect of Oxalic Acid on Fruit Quality and Storage Life of Blackberry (Rubus spp)

Blackberries hold a significant economic importance, renowned for its high nutritional content.Blackberries have shorter shelf life due to high metabolic activity, typically ranging from 2 days at 0.Therefore, the present study was done to investigate the effect of oxalic acid on fruit quality and shelf life of blackberries (Rubus spp.).This study was divided into two experiments.In experiment 1, two cultivars of blackberries (thorny and thornless) were harvested to screen out the best performing cultivar.In experiment 2, different oxalic acid treatments (T0: control, T1: 1.5 mM oxalic acid, T2: 2.5 mM oxalic acid and T3: 3.5 mM) were applied on best performing cultivars to extend the shelf life during storage period (3 to 12 days).After harvesting, fruit was brought to the postharvest and central lab of PMAS-Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi for physicochemical analysis.Results revealed that thorny cultivar exhibited significant variations in terms of Physical (Fruit size, Firmness), Biochemical (TSS, TA, juice pH, total sugars) and proximate (crude fiber, total carbohydrate, moisture and fat) parameters.Moreover, experiment 2 results revealed that among different oxalic acid treatments, T1 (1.5mM) performed best for maintaining shelf life and quality of blackberry fruit.