The nature and development of specific symptoms of chilling injury (CI) and the variation in sensitivity to the disorder of different cultivars of cantaloupe melons (Cucumis melo L. subsp. melo var. cantalupensis Naudin) was assessed during two seasons. Twenty-three cultivars of the Eastern Shipper (2), Western Shipper (13) and Galia (8) types were grown in a semiarid environment in Curacaví (33º27 S, 70º38 W), Chile, using common cultural practices. Fruits were harvested at the half-slip stage, except Galia (3/5 color), graded ,washed, and stored for 18 days at 0 ºC, with an additional 3 days at 20 ºC. Symptoms of CI appeared with varying intensity in almost all cultivars and were generally similar. Symptoms developed progressively: surface... |