Abstract
This work purposed to understand the influence of different trunk heights on some quality features of sweet cherry fruits at harvest and at the end of cold storage period (+3 °C, 30 days). For this aim, cv. 0900 Ziraat grafted on the same rootstock and in the same training system with different trunk heights, namely 45-40 cm, 60-65 cm, 75-80 cm and 90 ≤ cm were used as material. Fruit samples were examined in terms of quality parameters such as fruit weight, firmness, CIELab, soluble solid content, pH, titratable acidity, vitamin C and antioxidant activity. In addition, the content of some selected organic and phenolic acids in fruits were also analyzed. All evaluated quality parameters were significantly affected by different trunk height at harvest, except for fruit juice pH, and at the end of cold storage (P≤0.05). When each trunk height was considered separately, cherries showed a decrease in fruit weight, firmness, SSC, acidity and vitamin C, and an increase in fruit juice pH and antioxidant activity levels at the end of cold storage. CIELab colour values and phenolic content of cherries such as catechin, chlorogenic and caffeic acids exhibited an increase, whereas malic acid which predominates quantitatively in cherries showed a decrease at the end of cold storage period. As a result, the fruits obtained from 60-65 cm trunk height were found to have more stable fruit quality features than others at both, harvest and the end of cold storage period.