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Potential of in‐field and low temperature drying for reducing chlorophyll contents in canola ( Brassica napus L)
Author(s) -
Cenkowski Stefan,
Jayas Digvir S.,
Daun James K.
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
journal of the science of food and agriculture
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.782
H-Index - 142
eISSN - 1097-0010
pISSN - 0022-5142
DOI - 10.1002/jsfa.2740630402
Subject(s) - canola , brassica , chlorophyll , crop , agronomy , moisture , water content , horticulture , chlorophyll a , chlorophyll b , biology , chemistry , botany , geotechnical engineering , organic chemistry , engineering
Abstract The presence of green seeds in canola arises primarily from the common practice of swathing the crop prematurely in order to hasten the harvesting process and reduce the shattering losses. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of plant maturity, swathing and duration of swathing on moisture and chlorophyll contents of canola seeds ( Brassica napus L cv Westar), and to determine the effect of canola conditioning with air at 25·C and 90% RH on chlorophyll content. A standing crop of canola with 50% to 10% (w/w) seed moisture content was sampled at regular intervals in two consecutive harvest years (1989 and 1990). Canola was also swathed at three different stages of maturity, and seeds were checked for chlorophyll at 2‐3 day intervals and compared with chlorophyll contents of seed from standing crop. Samples were conditioned in a thin layer with air at 25·C and 90% RH for 24 h, and chlorophyll was determined before and after conditioning. The chlorophyll of seeds decreased exponentially with a decrease in moisture content. Conditioning canola seeds decreased chlorophyll content by an average of 16% (SD = ± 12%).