Abstract: Nitrous oxide(N2O)was tested to control the ripening and decay of po stharvest fruit of banana cv.Baxi.Short-term(24h)or continuous exposure of ba nana fruit to 20%,40%or 60%N2O, all containing 20% O2 could inhibit ripeni ng at ambient temperature be manifested by slower softening and delay skin colo r change.The best benefical effect was observed when 40%N2O applied to the fr u it for 24h.Fruit exposed continuously to N2O gas showed a delay in degreening p eel,but can not ripen normally in colour from green to yellow.Futhermore,c ont inuous exposure of.N2O markedly reduce disease development during storage.

Key words: nitrous oxide, banana, ripening, postharvest, decay