Abstract: 【Objective】 To study the effects of pre-harvest CaCl₂ spray treatment on post-harvest fruit softening and cell wall metabolism of prunes. 【Methods】 Using Franciscan prunes from Jiashi County, Kashgar Prefecture, Xinjiang, as the test material.2% CaCl₂ was used to spray the fruits during the expansion, colour change and harvesting periods, and the post-harvested prune fruits were placed in cold storage at a temperature of (4±1)℃ and a humidity of 90%-95% for 42 d. 【Results】 The results showed that preharvest CaCl₂ treatment inhibited the rise in respiratory intensity and cell membrane perm ability of prune fruit, delayed the onset of respiratory peaks, delayed the decline in raw pectin and cellulose content, and inhibited the rise in soluble pectin, polygalacturonase, pectin methyl esterase, cellulase and β-glucosidase activities. CaCl₂ put off the post-harvest softening process of prune fruit by delaying the degradation of cell wall components, thus effectively maintaining the postharvest hardness of prune fruit. By 28 day of storage, the hardness of CaCl₂ treated prune fruit increased by 11.23 %, the cellulose content increased by 8.51 % and the polygalacturonase, pectin methyl esterase, cellulase and β-glucosidase activities decreased by 4.31 %, 32.60 %, 24.60 % and 64.38 %, respectively. 【Conclusion】 Therefore, CaCl₂ preharvest treatment is a preservation method to improve the post-harvest quality of prune fruit.