UNICONAZOLE AND REDUCED IRRIGATION AFFECT POSTHARVEST PERFORMANCE OF CHRYSANTHEMUM
in HortScienceEight-week-old potted chrysanthemum (Dendranthema grandiflora Tzvelev. c. Ovaro) plants were treated with a soil drench of 0 or 2.5 mg uniconazole per liter and irrigated daily with 350 or 250 ml of nutrient solution. Plants were frequently water-stressed during their development. At the beginning of anthesis treatments were split and transferred to chambers with 20C/24 hr photoperiod or 25C/dark conditions. Anthesis progressed at the same rate in the two postharvest storage conditions, regardless of previous treatments. Plants were not watered until wilting, which was observed first in control plants under continuous photoperiod (8 days) and last in uniconazole-treated plants in dark storage (12 days). During the first 6 days in storage, evapotranspiration (ET) was lower for plants grown with 250 ml daily irrigation. From day 8 to day 12, when most plants were irrigated after they had wilted, ET was affected by uniconazole and an interaction of uniconazole and storage conditions.
