Cyrtanthus: An evaluation of cut flower performance and of treatments to maximise vase life

Abstract

In the current study two Cyrtanthus cultivars (one red flowered and one orange flowered) were grown at three locations in New Zealand. Flowering stems were harvested when the florets were in tight bud, pulsed for 24 h at 5–7°C with commercially available postharvest solutions or water, then packaged and stored to simulate transport before assessment of postharvest performance. In two experiments the vase life of the orange flowered cultivar was 15 and 18 days in water, whereas in other experiments the maximum vase life of the red flowered cultivar in water was 11 days. The majority (>90%) of the florets on the orange cultivar were fully open before the initiation of floret senescence on the same stem, whereas 40% of the florets of the red cultivar were starting to senesce when only 80% of the florets on the stem were open. In addition, bud abortion was more prevalent for the red flowered cultivar, which had an average rate of 9.2% bud abortion for stems treated with water compared to 0.1% for the orange flowered cultivar. Chrysal‐SVB was the only effective solution tested for extending the vase life of these cultivars, giving an extension of 2 days for both the orange and red Cyrtanthus flowers. Treatment of less mature stems of the orange flowered cultivar with a double rate of Chrysal‐SVB increased the vase life by 4 days. Stems were held in water after harvest and cool stored for up to 72 h before packing without affecting the subsequent vase life. In addition, we have shown that the orange flowered cultivar can be held dry in a cool store for up to 4 days after packaging with a subsequent vase life of 15 days in water.