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Control of Brown Rot and Blue Mold of Sweet Cherry with Preharvest Iprodione, Postharvest Cryptococcus infirmo-miniatus, and Modified Atmosphere Packaging

The effectiveness of preharvest iprodione and postharvest Cryptococcus infirmo-miniatus treatments alone and in combination for control of decay of sweet cherry fruit was studied. Also, the effect of a modified atmosphere on brown rot control was evaluated as a part of the iprodione--C. infirmo-miniatus combinations. A single preharvest application of iprodione at 1.13 kg a.i./ha reduced brown rot in stored sweet cherry fruit in both years of this study. Significantly better control of brown rot was obtained when cherry fruit that received a preharvest iprodione application also were treated with a postharvest dip in a suspension of C. infirmo-miniatus containing 0.5 to 1.5 × 10⁸ CFU/ml. Brown rot was reduced by modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) alone and further reduced as a result of a C. infirmo-miniatus--MAP synergism. Incidence of brown rot was reduced from 41.5% in the control to 0.4% by combining preharvest iprodione and postharvest C. infirmo-miniatus treatments with MAP.