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Plant Science Today (PST)

Research Articles

Vol. 13 No. sp5 (2026): Recent Advances in Agriculture

Influence of agronomic micronutrient biofortification on growth, post-harvest shelf life and quality of chickpea microgreens

DOI
https://doi.org/10.14719/pst.16035
Submitted
12 June 2026
Published
30-08-2026

Abstract

Microgreens are tender plant-based foods typically consumed fresh as seasonings, garnishes or as whole foods. Their elevated respiration and transpiration rates after harvest induce senescence and deterioration of fresh biomass. Their high surface-area-to-volume ratio and active post-harvest metabolism render them highly perishable and accelerate nutritional losses. The aim of the present study was to standardise the most suitable post-harvest protectant amongst aloe vera gel, glycerol, chlorine water, ascorbic and citric acid for chickpea genotype HK-4 microgreens. Further, the study aimed to understand the influence of iron-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (Fe-EDTA) amendment in vermiculite during growth, combined with the application of the standardised protectant after harvest, on the biochemical and organoleptic parameters during storage at 5 °C in zip-lock pouches. Among the various post-harvest applications, 0.5 % ascorbic acid exhibited maximum fresh weight retention (79 %) and maintained visual appeal for up to 15 days of storage. Therefore, 0.5 % ascorbic acid was utilised as a protectant for chickpea microgreens grown in control (distilled water) and Fe-EDTA-amended vermiculite. Fresh weight declined during storage under all treatments; although losses were significantly lower following post-harvest application of 0.5 % ascorbic acid regardless of the growing condition. While the moisture content declined during storage, the ash content increased until the 10th day. The ascorbic acid content, antioxidant activity and total soluble solids (TSS) decreased substantially during storage, however growth under Fe-EDTA amended conditions and post-harvest application of ascorbic acid retained the highest content i.e. 70.6 mg/100 g, 8.4 % and 15.6 % respectively. On the other hand, the tannin concentration increased by 5.7 times, whereas the phytic acid content showed a 0.7-fold decline during storage, with the greatest changes observed in control-grown microgreens treated with distilled water. Organoleptic attributes diminished during storage; however, post-harvest application of ascorbic acid helped maintain them better. The results revealed that the shelf life of chickpea microgreens is influenced by nutrient manipulations during growth and post-harvest application of ascorbic acid, which retained the maximum nutritional and organoleptic attributes.

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