New Zealand Journal of Crop and Horticultural Science abstracts
Cyrtanthus: an evaluation of cut flower performance and of treatments
to maximise vase life
J. R. Eason
G. E. Clark
A. C. Mullan
E. R. Morgan
New Zealand Institute for Crop & Food
Research Limited
Food Industry Science Centre
Private Bag 11 600
Palmerston North, New Zealand
email: easonj@crop.cri.nz
Abstract In the current study two Cyrtanthus
cultivars (one red flowered and one orange flowered) were grown at three
locations in New Zealand. Flowering stems were harvested when the florets
were in tight bud, pulsed for 24 h at 5-7°C with commercially available
postharvest solutions or water, then packaged and stored to simulate transport
before assessment of postharvest performance. In two experiments the vase
life of the orange flowered cultivar was 15 and 18 days in water, whereas
in other experiments the maximum vase life of the red flowered cultivar in
water was 11 days. The majority (>90%) of the florets on the orange cultivar
were fully open before the initiation of floret senescence on the same stem,
whereas 40% of the florets of the red cultivar were starting to senesce when
only 80% of the florets on the stem were open. In addition, bud abortion
was more prevalent for the red flowered cultivar, which had an average rate
of 9.2% bud abortion for stems treated with water compared to 0.1% for the
orange flowered cultivar. Chrysal-SVB was the only effective solution tested
for extending the vase life of these cultivars, giving an extension of 2
days for both the orange and red Cyrtanthus flowers. Treatment of
less mature stems of the orange flowered cultivar with a double rate of Chrysal-SVB
increased the vase life by 4 days. Stems were held in water after harvest
and cool stored for up to 72 h before packing without affecting the subsequent
vase life. In addition, we have shown that the orange flowered cultivar can
be held dry in a cool store for up to 4 days after packaging with a subsequent
vase life of 15 days in water.
Keywords cool storage; Cyrtanthus elatus; flower;
harvest maturity; senescence; vase life
H02043 Received 17 June 2002; accepted 9 September 2002 ; published 9
December 2002
New Zealand Journal of Crop and Horticultural Science, 2002, Vol. 30:
281-289
0014-0671/02/3004-0281 $7.00 © The Royal Society of New Zealand
2002
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