Tiprot in asparagus: Effect of temperature during spear growth

Tiprot, a postharvest disorder of asparagus, occurred at high frequency (99%) in spears grown at 20 degrees C in controlled temperature conditions, but at low frequency (3%) in spears grown at 13 degrees C. During spear growth, if temperatures of spears and crowns were controlled separately at 13 and 20 degrees C or at 20 and 13 degrees C, respectively, incidence of tiprot was similar at 56-62%. The occurrence of tiprot was negatively correlated with sucrose content of the spear tip, and positively correlated with spear tip respiration rate and spear height growth rate. Sucrose content of the spear tip at harvest gives the most practical measure of predisposition to tiprot during storage but may not be the primary cause of the disorder.