ISHS Acta Horticulturae 541: IV International Symposium on New Floricultural Crops
SEASONAL FLOWERING PATTERNS FOR HELICONIA SHOWN BY GROWER RECORDS |
| Author: | R.A. Criley |
| Keywords: | Photoperiod, tropical cut flowers, H. angusta, H. bihai, H. caribaea, H. caribaea ´ bihai, H. collinsiana, H. lingulata, H. rostrata, H. stricta, H. wagneriana |
| Abstract:
The natural flowering season for Heliconia species in their natural habitats is sometimes indicated in the taxonomic literature, but it may be influenced locally by rainfall and drought periods as well as by photoperiod and may not be reliable in indicating production periods elsewhere. Wild-collected plants are often introduced with little or no information on their season of bloom. With more than three dozen species of Heliconia grown and exported in international trade, the seasonality of flowering is important to the supply and marketing of this bold tropical flower. In Hawaii, sales records from several commercial growers were collected over several years to identify the peak seasons of bloom as well as the duration of the blooming season. Such information is helpful in coordinating with the flower markets. Heliconia species of commercial interest with strong seasonal flowering periods are noted: (angusta, bihai, caribaea, caribaea X bihai, collinsiana, lingulata, rostrata, stricta, wagneriana) as well as species with longer periods of bloom such as the psittacorum cultivars and hybrids. | |
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