Abstract
Commercial greenhouse operators are increasingly using “negative DIF” temperature regimes to control crop height. A negative DIF exists when greenhouse night temperature is greater than the day temperature. Large negative differences in day and night temperatures strongly suppress stem elongation in many crops. We have explored the effects of negative DIF temperature regimes on leaf, flower, and stem carbohydrate levels in Lilium longiflorum Thunb. `Nellie White'. During two growing seasons, `Nellie White' plants were grown under positive or negative DIF regimes (±5 or 8C) under prevailing daylengths, with temperatures adjusted so that daily temperature averages were equal between regimes. Plants were harvested ≈10 days after visible bud stage and at anthesis. Carbohydrates in stems, leaves, and flowers were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography. Compared to plants grown under positive DIF, negative DIF plants showed significantly reduced stem length and leaf and stem dry weights. Negative DIF regimes reduced leaf and stem total soluble carbohydrate (TSC) content by 39% to 46% at visible bud and anthesis, while flower TSC content was reduced by 10% to 13%.
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