The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of preharvest sprays of aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG) combined or not with ethephon on the quality of 'Gala' apples stored in controlled atmosphere. The treatments were: control, ethephon (140 g ha-1), AVG (125 g ha-1), AVG (125 g ha-1) + ethephon (140 g ha-1), AVG (95 g ha-1) and AVG (95 g ha-1) + ethephon (140 g ha-1). These treatments were combined with harvest date at 131, 138 and 145 days after full bloom. The AVG and ethephon were applied 30 and 7 days before the first harvest, respectively. The application of AVG, combined or not with ethephon, afforded fruits with higher flesh firmness, greener peel color, reduced rot and physiological disorders incidence, lowered ethylene production and respiration. Fruits treated with ethephon showed a quality like control fruits. Application of ethephon in AVG treated plants did not affect the efficiency of AVG in the quality of apples after storage.
Malus domestica; AVG; quality
