Comparison of vase-life and ethylene response of Verticordia cut flowers

Abstract

SummaryTwenty-one selections from 16 species of Verticordia were tested in terms of vase-life and floral organ drop (bud plus flower drop). Flower vase-life ranged from 5 d for V. nitens, yellow form to 19 d for V. densiflora var. cespitosa, with an average vase-life for all selections of 12 d. Leaf vase-life ranged from 5 d for V. nitens, yellow form, to 30 d for V. pennigera, dark pink form, with an average vase-life of 17 d. For all selections, except the orange and yellow forms of V. nitens, leaf vase-life was greater than flower vase-life by an average of 5 d. Nine selections had significant (P < 0.05) increases in floral organ drop following exposure to exogenous ethylene compared to non-exposure. Floral organ drop ranged from 7% for V. serrata to 83% for the orange form of V. nitens. Twelve selections, such as V. plumosa var. plumosa, V. densiflora var. cespitosa and V. monodelpha var. monodelpha, were insensitive to exposure to exogenous ethylene. Two selections, V. dichroma var. dichroma and V. grandis, had > 9% floral organ drop irrespective of whether they were exposed to ethylene or not. Post-harvest responses, in terms of vase-life and floral organ drop, of those Verticordia spp. tested where analysed according in their respective sub-genus: Chrysoma, Eperephes or Verticordia.All selections in the sub-genus Chrysoma, such as V. nitens, were sensitive to ethylene and had a short vase-life. Forty-four percent of selections in the sub-genus Eperephes were sensitive to ethylene and had a medium vase-life. All selections in the sub-genus Verticordia were insensitive to ethylene and had a long vase-life. The implications of these results in terms of selecting Verticordia as a cut flower are discussed.