박과에 속하는 멜론은 다양한 형태, 과실 크기, 과피와 과육의 변이를 가진다. 또한, 멜론은 당도가 높고 향기와 과즙이 풍부하여 경제적으로도 중요한 작물이다. 멜론 종내에는 호흡과 에틸렌의 차이에 따라 호흡급등형(climacter)과 비호흡급등형(non-climacteric) 타입이 동시에 존재한다. 멜론은 에틸렌 발생량이 많은 과실이며 에틸렌은 성발현에 중요한 역할을 하며 다른 호르몬들도 상호 작용하여 과실이 성숙 시에 영향을 끼친다. 멜론은
Among Cucubitaceae, melon (Cucumis melo) is one of the most diversified fruits, with various forms, sizes, pulps, and peel colors, In addition, it is a commercially important crop because of its high sweetness, deep flavor, and abundant juice. In the species, there are both climacteric and non-climacteric melons depending on the respiration and ethylene production patterns after harvest. Ethylene is also considered a crucial hormone for determining sex expression, Phytohormones other than ethylene interact and regulate ripening, There are some indices that can be used to evaluate the optimum harvest maturity. The harvest time can be estimated after the pollination time, which is the most commonly used method of determining the harvest maturity of the fruit. Besides the physiological aspects, the biochemical alterations, including those of sweetness, firmness, flavor, color, and rind, contribute to the overall fruit quality. These changes can be categorized based on the ethylene-dependent and ethylene-independent phenomena due to the ethylene-suppressed transgenic melon. After harvest, the fruits are precooled to to reduce the field heat, after which they are sized and packed. The fruits can be treated with hot water ( for 60 min) to prevent the softening of the enzyme activity and microorganisms, and with calcium to maintain their firmness. 1-methylenecyclopropene (1-MCP) treatment also maintains their storability by inhibiting respiration and ethylene production. The shelf life of melon is very short even under cold storage, like other cucurbits, and it is prone to obtaining chilling injury under . In South Korea, low-temperature () storage is known to be the best storage condition for the fruit. For long-time transport, CA storage is a good method of maintaining the quality of the fruit by reducing the respiration and ethylene. For fresh-cut processing, washing with a sanitizing agent and packing with plastic-film processing are needed, and low-temperature storage is necessary. The consumer need and demand for fresh-cut melon are growing, but preserving the quality of fresh-cut melon is more challenging than preserving the quality of the whole fruit.