Abstract
Abstract Although much is known about the production of bedding plants, including Impatiens walleriana, little has been documented on their post-production performance. Thus, the aim of this work was to understand how pre-transplant crop management related to root restrictions imposed by plug cell volume and substrate quality affects the post-production performance related to biomass accumulation. To this end, we tested four plug cell volumes, as well as four growing media with significantly different physical and chemical properties, during nursery and pot culture. We also evaluated the difference between use and nonuse of synthetic cytokinin spray (benzyl aminopurine, BAP), a proven stress alleviator. Our novelty data validated the previous hypothesis and showed that plant quality and garden performance are dependent on these potential stress sources. The physiological mechanisms involved included differences in leaf area expansion (estimated mainly by relative leaf area expansion rate) and differences in CO2 fixation capacity (estimated by net assimilation rate). The sum of these responses determined significant differences in total fresh and dry weight during pot culture, which were amplified when plants were transplanted to a field bed. Spraying plants with synthetic cytokinin early during nursery allowed overriding of most root restriction abiotic stresses related to plug cell volume and growing media; therefore, synthetic cytokinin constitutes a tool to improve the yield of bedding plants (at the grower's level) and garden performance.
Highlights
Bedding plants represent the fastest growing segment of the Green Industries
A single benzyl aminopurine (BAP) spray applied at the moment the first true leaf pair was developed significantly increased the responses to the plug cell volume and the growing media (Table 2)
The changes in leaf area, fresh weights (FW) and Dry weights (DW) were different depending on the growing medium used during the pot stage (Table 3)
Summary
Bedding plants represent the fastest growing segment of the Green Industries. Annual sales of flowering potted plants keep setting new records, as their popularity continues to soar among consumers of most developed and developing countries. One of the most important and most widely grown bedding plants in the world today is Impatiens walleriana Hook. Since the ultimate destination of bedding plants is a garden setting, understanding their physiological responses during the post-production stage becomes very important to preserve their quality. Much is known about the production of bedding plants, little has been documented recently on their post-production performance (Hakim et al, 2017). At the end of the production phase, for example, several specific actions can be executed in order to increase shelf life. Any practice that decreases plant quality during production decreases shelf life, and, regardless of the causes, a plant suffering stress has a reduced shelf life. If plants leaving the greenhouse have poor quality, the best of places will not be able to improve their postproduction life (Armitage, 1986)
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