Chinese bayberry (Myrica rubra Sieb. Et Zucc.) is a characteristic berry fruitnative to China， which is popular to consumers for its attractive appearance and juicy taste. However， its postharvest storage and transportation remained to be a great challenge in the industry. The fruit decay caused by pathogen infection is one of the chief causes for the postharvest loss of bayberry fruit. Present study evaluated the effects of cold plasma on preventing the postharvest decay of Chinese bayberry fruit as well as the underlying mechanisms. According to the results， the cold plasma significantly reduced the decay rate of bayberry fruit during the storage period， and the effects increased with the treatment frequency. The disease progression of the Penicillium citrinum-inoculated fruit was significantly inhibited after the cold plasma treatment. The cold plasma treated P. citrinum spores showed significantly higher propidium iodide (PI)， Hoechst 33342 and DCFH-DA staining rates， with time-dependent effect. In addition， the cold plasma treated P. citrinum spores were detected to be ruptured and shrunken by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Thus， it is deduced that the cold plasma might induce the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the spores of P. citrinum， which lead to the necrosis and apoptosis of spores. The results of present study provided theoretical support for the application of cold plasma in the control of postharvest diseases of bayberry fruit.