Effect of Some Post-Harvest Treatments on Quality and Vase Life of Moluccella Laevis Cut Flowers

Abstract

The present study was carried out in the Post-harvest Lab of Ornamental Plants and Landscape Gardening Res. Dept., Hort. Res. Inst., Giza, Egypt in the two successive seasons of 2017 and 2018. The experiment aim was to evaluate the effect of pulsing in silver thiosulfate (STS) or H2O with or without the pinching process on cut Moluccella laevis flowers at three cold storage periods for 3,6 and
9days additionally with a holdin solution containing citric acid at 0.2g/l +sucrose at 20g/l and clarify their effect on some postharvest characteristics. The obtained data exhibited that STS treatment enhanced the vase life of cut flowers, raised the water uptake, improved the relative fresh weight, decreased the stem curvature and wilting percentage of cut flowers and maintained the chemical
composition like chlorophyll contents as well as increasing reducing sugars in cut flowers compared to pulsing treatment of cut flowers in H2O. The pinching procedure on cut flowers had a slight effect on almost all traits tested in this study. The previous measurements achieved the best results by reducing cold storage periods whereas, storing cut flowers for 3 days (the shortest period) had an increment in the vase life, increased the water uptake, reduced stem curvature and wilting besides, it maintained the chemical composition of cut flowers. Thus, the interaction between STS as a pulsing treatment and nonpinching procedure of cut flowers under room temperature can be recommended as the superior treatment to achieve the best result and record the good quality of cut flowers.