ISHS Acta Horticulturae 543: VII International Symposium on Postharvest Physiology of Ornamental Plants
IDENTIFICATION OF BUD MATURITY INDICATORS FOR FRESH-CUT PEONY FLOWERS |
| Authors: | K. Gast, J. McLaren, R. Kampjes |
| Keywords: | Paeonia lactiflora, postharvest, maturity, picking standards |
| Abstract:
One of the greatest challenges to growing and harvesting fresh cut peony (Paeonia lactiflora) flowers is to harvest them at the optimum stage of development. Unopened buds transport and store better than opened flowers, but when not picked correctly, the buds may open prematurely or not at all. Both growers and researchers have found that picking standards are fairly unique for each cultivar. A different set of criteria determines if the bud is mature enough for harvest. Maturity series have been developed successfully for fruit crops. Using this model as basis, we developed a bud maturity series for eight peony cultivars in New Zealand. Several parameters were used to separate the buds into different grades: firmness, amount of lifted petals, amount of center showing, color shift, angle of guard petals, bud length, and color brightness. Vase life and progression through maturity stages were recorded. As expected, less mature buds took longer to pass through the different maturity stages. Vase life varied by cultivar. Only Elsa Sass and Immacule‚ had less than 90% of all the flowers opening in all the grades. Current work is being done in the USA with seven more cultivars. | |
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