Chilling Tolerance in Cucumber Seed Selections from China
in HortScienceFour cucumber seed lines obtained from the Inst. of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China, were tested for chilling tolerance. Comparisons were made with `Poinsett 76', a commercially available cultivar from the United States. Seeds germinated at 25°C were exposed to 2°C for time periods up to 108 hr. Root injury was assessed by measuring subsequent root growth at 25°C at 72 hr after the chill. Electrolyte leakage measurements were taken on roots excised immediately after the chill. Total seedling root length and electrolyte leakage studies showed significant tolerance to chilling in the selections from China as compared to `Poinsett 76'. `Poinsett 76' seedling roots began to show stress after 72 hr of chill and were irreversibly damaged, with abortion of root tips, after 96 hr at 2°C. The China seed selections were more tolerant to a 96-hr chill and even at exposure times up to 108 hr only began to approximate chilling effects exhibited by `Poinsett 76' at 72 hr of treatment.
