Effects of temperature on the quality of garlic (allium sativum l) cv. lumbu kuning during storage

Abstract

The quality of garlic bulbs may be deteriorated under storage. This work aimed to study the effect of storage temperature on the quality of garlic during storage. A local garlic variety, i.e. Lumbu Kuning was used in the study. The bulbs were collected from a farmer. After drying, the bulbs were subjected to different temperature storage conditions, i.e. 0°>C; 7°C (RH 50-70%, darkness), and a room temperature (29-31°C, RH 70-80%). The treated bulbs were stored for 6 months. The parameters observed were weight, numbers of empty and sprouted bulbs. The treatments were carried out in three replications (54-67 bulbs or 300 g per replicate). The results showed that the highest weight loss was found from the bulbs stored at 7°C (25.08%), followed those stored at the room temperature (18.76%) and 0°C (10.47%). The highest sprouting percentage occurred in those stored at 7°C (25.16%). The empty bulbs percentage was found for that garlic stored at 0°C and a room temperature were 6% and 13%, respectively. The study suggests that storage condition at 0°C is recommended for long-term storage of garlic bulbs.