Effect of long-term storage on physiology of cut roses

Abstract

Long-term shipment of flowers in reefer containers as a replacement of airfreight is the method of choice with respect to saving on transport costs and decreasing the carbon footprint. Long term storage, in general, also facilitates the required delivery of large volumes on peak days such as Mother's day or Valentine's day. Optimal storage conditions have been developed over the years for a variety of flowers and cultivars with varying degrees of success. In roses, the long storage at low temperature may induce a number of disorders that greatly shorten the remaining vase life. The symptoms observed during the vase life of long term stored roses are mainly on performance of the flower head (botrytis, wilting, bent neck, impaired opening) and occasionally also on the performance of the leaves (blackening, desiccation, abscission). The physiological basis of the flower performance problems was investigated in different rose cultivars. Long term storage did not affect the xylem hydraulic conductivity and did not alter the petal sugar status or petal electrolyte leakage (indicator of membrane integrity). Storage was found to affect the functionality of stomata leading to less adequate stomata closing in response to mild water stress.