The combined effects of tea tree oil and hot air treatment on the quality and sensory characteristics and decay of strawberry

In this study, the antifungal activities of tea tree oil (TTO) combined with hot air (HA) treatment against Botrytis cinerea, the causal agent of strawberry gray mold, was tested in vitro and in vivo. Results showed that both TTO and HA treatment inhibit mycelial growth and destroy the hyphal ultrastructure of B. cinerea. The combined treatment (TTO + HA) results in a significantly synergistic effects in in vitro tests. Compared with control fruit, each treatment (TTO, HA, TTO + HA) reduced the gray mold in strawberry fruit inoculated with B. cinerea, the combined treatment resulted in lowest decay incidence and lesion diameter. The combined treatment also induced higher activities of chitinase (CHI) and β-1, 3-glucanase (GLU) and these strawberries subjected to this combined treatment maintained a better commercial quality as measured by firmness, TSS, a* value and sensory evolution, than those treated with TTO or HA alone. It was concluded that combined TTO and HA treatment of strawberry fruit is more effective at controlling decay and maintaining fruit quality than single treatment, that may be a potential strategy for commercial application in strawberries.