Constant Soil Temperature Influences Flowering of Alstroemerias
in HortScienceThe effect of constant 16C and noncontrolled soil temperature on flowering of four Alstroemeria cultivars grown in a greenhouse was studied over 3 years. Soil temperature regime did not influence either the start or cessation of flowering. During spring/summer, production was 15% lower under constant soil temperature, irrespective of cultivar. During fall/winter, the effect of constant soil temperature was cultivar-dependent; yield of `Red Sunset' was increased by 150%, while that for `Rio' decreased by 2270 relative to the noncontrolled. Annual production was not affected, but the ratio between the production of spring/summer and fail/winter decreased from 3.1 to 2.2 for noncontrolled and constant soil temperature, respectively.
