Quantification and modelling of the stomatal, cuticular and crack components of peach fruit surface conductance
Caroline Gibert A B , Michel Génard A , Gilles Vercambre A and Françoise Lescourret A CA INRA, Unité Plantes et Systèmes de culture Horticoles, UR 1115, Domaine Saint-Paul, Site Agroparc, Avignon Cedex 9, F-84914, France.
B Present address: INRA, Unité Abeilles et Environnement, UMR 406 UAPV/INRA, Laboratoire Pollinisation et Ecologie des Abeilles, Domaine Saint-Paul, Site Agroparc, Avignon Cedex 9, F-84914, France.
C Corresponding author. Email: francoise.lescourret@avignon.inra.fr
Functional Plant Biology 37(3) 264-274 https://doi.org/10.1071/FP09118
Submitted: 23 May 2009 Accepted: 27 December 2009 Published: 25 February 2010
Abstract
This study describes the components of fruit surface conductance. It aims to revise a modelling framework examining water loss across the fruit epidermis in relation to time and fruit growing conditions. For this purpose, cuticular crack surface area, healing artificial wounds in vivo, stomatal number and total fruit surface conductance were quantified during nectarine (Prunus persica L. nucipersica) fruit growth under contrasted irrigation regimes or thinning intensities. The contribution of stomatal component to total conductance decreased very early. A sub-model of the specific cuticular conductance according to fruit age was proposed that accounted for the complex temporal variation of the cuticular component. The occurrence of cracks was modelled by considering the relative expansion rate of the cuticle as a function of fruit fresh mass and relative expansion rate of the fruit. Healing decreased with fruit age. The observed temporal variations of fruit surface conductance and cuticular crack surface area were well simulated by the modified model whatever the fruit growing conditions. Tests on independent data revealed that the model was highly sensitive to parameters related to cuticular crack development and to cuticular properties.
Additional keywords: cuticle, nectarine, stomata, wound healing.
Acknowledgements
We gratefully acknowledge P. Rouet for assistance in the field experiments and M. Dapp for assistance in the laboratory. This research was supported by grants from the French Ministry of Ecology and Sustainable Development, program ‘Evaluation and reduction of risks related to pesticide use’ (# 12-E/2003 CV. 300099) and from an ‘Irriqual’ program, co-funded by the European Commission, DG Research, within the 6th Framework Program of RTD, Priority 5-Food Quality and Safety (# FP6-FOOD-CT-2006–023120).
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