Are low temperatures detrimental to aubergine?
Like most fruits from tropical and subtropical regions, aubergine is susceptible to physiological damage when exposed to temperatures below 8-10°C.
Therefore, chilling injury is a serious problem in maintaining the post-harvest quality of aubergine (Wang, 1994). When aubergines are stored at low temperatures chilling injury occurs, and its severity increases as temperatures decrease (Hatton 1990, Gajewski et al. 2009, Zaro et al. 2014). These physiological disorders first appear as browning of the seeds, pulp and calyx. Then more severe symptoms occur such as browning of the skin, and the appearance of scald or pitting (Molinar et al. 1996, Cantwell & Suslow, 1997, Concellón et al. 2004, Concellón et al. 2007). These symptoms may not appear during cold storage but afterwards when the aubergines are returned to room temperature (Erard et al. 2003, Wang 2013).