Effects of Stage of Maturity, Storage, and Cultivar on Some Quality Attributes of Tomatoes1

Fruits of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill cvs. Jet Star and Floramerica) were harvested at various maturity stages and ripened at 20°C and 80% relative humidity. Differences in pH between field-ripened and storage-ripened fruits of either cultivar were not significant. Ascorbic acid of ‘Jet Star’ fruits increased slightly during ripening both on and off the plant; ‘Floramerica’ fruits showed no changes in ascorbic acid content during ripening. Field-ripened fruits had significantly higher ascorbic acid than storage-ripened fruits. The β-carotene content significantly increased with ripening for both cultivars, with no significant differences between field- and storage-ripened fruits. Fruits of ‘Jet Star’ contained more β-carotene than ‘Floramerica’ fruits. Total sugars increased during ripening up to the firm ripe stage. Total sugar content of field-ripened fruits was significantly higher than storage-ripened fruits in ‘Jet Star’ but not in ‘Floramerica’. Fruits harvested in the breaker stage retained the highest total sugar content during storage.