BACKGROUND: C arbaryl i s widely used t o control various i nsect pests on greenhouse cucumbers in Iran. T herefore the control of residual levels of this insecticide i s h ighly n ecessary. T he effects of t he household processing such as washing, peeling a nd refrigeration s torage, a t 4 ◦C for 2 days on t he reduction of r esidue levels in the plant tissues were investigated in the different groups. S amples were collected at 1 h to 14 days after a pplication a nd analysed to determine t he content a nd dissipation rate of carbaryl. Analysis was carried out by t he QuEChERS method using HPLC-UV. RESULTS: Carbaryl residue i n s amples, which were collected post-application i n different times s howed a gradual a nd significant ( P < 0 .05) decrease. The h alf-life ( t1/2 ) of carbaryl a pplied on cucumbers was 3 .2 days. C arbaryl r esidues were detected i n concentration r anges of 0.22 – 4.91 mg kg−1 . Also, the r esults indicated t hat t he consumable safety time of carbaryl was found to be m ore th an 14 days on cucum ber. CONCLUSION: Household pr ocessing, s uch as washing and peeling a nd refrigeration s torage, was effective in r educing t he residue l evels. Also, peeling was the m ost e ff ective way t o r educe t he carbaryl residues of the cucumber s amples. W ashing and refrigerated storage a lso decreased carbaryl residues.
