Prolonging Vase Life of Gladiolus (Gladiolus grandiflorus L.) var. Arka Amar with Various Preservative Solutions

Abstract

Background: Arka Amar is a most popular variety of gladiolus which is used as cut flower and cut flowers are highly perishable materials and pregnable to large post-harvest losses. There is an immense post-harvest losses in value of cut flowers which is seen all along the marketing channels and it can be up to 40-50%. So, an experiment was carried out to find out the best combination of preservative solutions to enhance the vase life of Gladiolus (Gladiolus grandiflorus L.) var. Arka Amar. Methods: In this laboratory study during March 2022 to April 2022, different preservative solutions were analyzed to find out the maximum longevity of spikes. The experiment was laid out in C.R.D. with nine different combinations of sucrose, Al2 (SO4)3, AgNO3 and citric acid including control (distilled water). Result: The study revealed that the treatment T9 (Sucrose 2% + AgNO3 50ppm + citric acid 100 ppm) increased the percentage of water uptake both in weight and volume basis, minimize the days taken for opening of 1st floret (4.83 days), increase the length (7.41 cm) and diameter (13 cm) of floret, increase the percentage of opening of florets/spike (96.92%), maximize the longevity of floret (22 days) and flowering duration of spike (14.66 days). Visual scoring on appearance (8.71) and freshness (8.93) were also found significant for the above treatment combination.