Abstract
Kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa cv. Hayward) produced ethylene after transferred from cold storage to 20°C. There were great differences among individual fruit in beginning time of ethylene production. Almost every kiwifruit which produced much ethylene in the beginning of ripening at 20°C were infected with soft rot by Botryosphaeria or/and Phomopsis spp. Ethylene production rate was highly correlated with the extension of soft rot symptom. Kiwifruit with the bigger symptom produced the higher rate of ethylene, the higher content of l-aminocyclopropane-l-carboxylic acid (ACC) and the higher activity of ethylene forming enzyme (EFE).
The great difference among individual fruit in ethylene production during ripening can be partly explained by the fact that kiwifruit produce much ethylene immediately after infection with soft rot.
