Floret Length Research Articles

Gladiolus Growth and Flowering: Impact of Chemicals And Plant Growth Regulators

To study the growth and flowering of gladiolus by using different chemicals and PGR, an experiment was conducted at the research field of the Department of Horticulture, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Gazipur from September 2019 to May 2020. Medium sized (3.5-4.5 cm) corms of the variety BARI gladiolus-3 were planted at about 6-9 cm depth in a unit plot of 1.8 m X 1.2 m maintaining a spacing of 30 cm X 20 cm following Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with 3 replications. Foliar spray with 3 levels of GA3 (150, 200 and 250 ppm), 2 levels of KNO3 (1 and 2%) and 2 levels of Ca(NO3)2 (1 and 2%) along with control (only tap water) was done at 30, 45 and 60 days after planting (DAP). Results revealed that although, the tallest plant (62.9 cm) was observed in T3; where, GA3 was applied at the highest concentration (250 ppm) but it was statistically at par with the height recorded in T2 (60.7 cm) and T4 (59.4 cm); where, GA3 was applied @ 200 ppm and KNO3 was applied @ 1%, respectively. Although, Spike length in T3 (85.7 cm) varied statistically with T2 (75.9 cm) but rachis length in T3 (57.4 cm) was statistically similar with T2 (56.8 cm). Floret length and breadth in T2 (11.3 cm and 11.3 cm, respectively) were higher than T3 (10.7 cm and 10.8 cm, respectively). Number of floret per spike was statistically similar in all treatments except T4 (12.7) and T7 (12.4). The highest leaf area was recorded in T5 (189.5 cm2); where, KNO3 was applied @ 2% and this was statistically similar to all other treatments except T6 (148.9 cm2); where Ca(NO3)2 was applied @ 1%. On overall consideration, gibberellic acid (GA3) @ 250 ppm may be used for better growth and flowering of gladiolus. Ann. Bangladesh Agric. (2021) 25 (1) : 67-78

Irrigation and soil mulching can improve the quality of flower stems of gladiolus

AbstractGladiolus is one of the most important bulbous flowers produced worldwide. The objective of this study was to evaluate the combined effect of irrigation and soil mulching on soil water conservation and its effect on gladiolus floral stem quality. Two field experiments were conducted with gladiolus at the Federal University of Santa Maria, state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, during 2019 and 2020. The experimental design was a completely randomized three‐factor design, with two cultivars (Red Beauty and T704 in experiment 1 ‐ E1 and Red Beauty and Jester in experiment 2 ‐ E2), two cultivation systems (soil mulched with straw and bare soil) and two water regimes (irrigated and non‐irrigated) as treatments. When gladiolus plants reached the R2 stage (harvest point), total stem length, spike length, stem diameter and final number of florets were evaluated. Variables were subjected to analysis of variance and Tukey's test at 5% of error probability. Irrigation improved the quality of floral stems, with greater stem and spike length, greater diameter and number of florets per spike, thus resulting in stems with greater decorative value. The soil covered with straw did not influence the quality parameters of the floral stem of the gladiolus, the only observed difference between cultivars being the variable length of the spike.

Performance of different varieties of gerbera (Gerbera jamesonii Bolus) under protected cultivation in the Konkan region of Maharashtra.

An investigation was carried out to evaluate ten varieties of gerbera (Gerbera jamesonii Bolus) viz. Stanza, Ankur, Danna Ellen, Brilliance, Balance, Silvester, Goliath, Dune, Intense, and Rosalin under protected cultivation at the High-Tech nursery, College of Horticulture, Dapoli, Ratnagiri (M.S.) during 2020-21. Among the varieties study, there were highly significant variations observed for flowering parameters. The significantly minimum days to first flower bud emergence (84.76 days), maximum flower stalk length (64.15 cm), flower diameter (99.59 cm), length of ray floret (4.81 cm), number of flowers per plant (22.00), flowers yield per ha (7.92 lakhs), vase life (9.67 days) and longevity of flowers in the field (11.33 days) were recorded in variety Ankur. The maximum flower disc diameter (2.41 cm) was recorded in a variety of Dune. Flower stalk diameter (5.98 cm), number of petals per flower (85.02) were recorded maximum in a variety Goliath. The maximum width of ray floret (8.96 cm) was observed in variety Balance.

Impact of corm size and phosphorous on growth and floral characteristics of gladiolus (Gladiolus grandiflorus)

Abstract. Hossain TM, Pitol MNS, Mannan MA, Khan SAKU. 2021. Impact of corm size and phosphorous on growth and floral characteristics of gladiolus (Gladiolus grandiflorus). Asian J Agric 5: 90-97. The present study was conducted to investigate the impact of corm size and phosphorus levels on the growth, flowering, corm and cormel production of gladiolus (Gladiolus grandiflorus L.). The experiment was laid out in Randomized a Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications, three corm sizes, viz. S1 (31-40 g), S2 (21-30 g), S3 (10-20 g) and four phosphorus levels, viz. P0 (Control), P1 (200 kg ha-1 Triple Super Phosphate (TSP), P2 (300 kg ha-1 TSP), P3 (400 kg ha-1 TSP). The observations were recorded for various vegetative, floral and corm parameters. Corm size had a significant impact on plant height, number of leaves, number of tillers, size of the leaf, number of spikes, spike length and number of florets. Corm size also significantly impacted all yield contributing characters and yield of corm and cormel. Large (S1) and medium-size (S2) corms were found superior to small-size (S3) corms in respect to all the parameters. At 60 days after planting (DAP), the highest plant (83.53 cm), the maximum number of leaves (10.00), the utmost number of tiller (3.00), the highest number of spike (10.00), the largest spike (87.03 cm), the maximum number of floret (13.80), the greatest number of corm and cormel (154.67), the maximum size of corm (44.16 mm) and the highest weight (2706.7 gm) of corm was obtained from the treatment combination of S1 (31-40 g) treated with P3 (400 kg ha-1) TSP under this observation. The obtained result will guide the farmers on what types of planting materials and how much fertilizer to use to cultivate gladiolus commercial successfully.

Morpho-metric characterization and genetic variability studies in chrysanthemum

AbstractGermplasm characterization is essential to estimate variation and identify desirable genotypes for crop improvement. The current study was conducted on eight qualitative and 14 quantitative traits related to growth and floral attributes for characterization and grouping of 54 chrysanthemum genotypes. Wide variability was observed among most of the traits and principal component analysis revealed that the first two principal components explained most of the existing variation (>98%) in germplasm. Genotypic coefficient of variation exhibited a wide range from 9.41% (ratio of leaf length/width) to 105.99% (corolla tube length of ray florets), while phenotypic coefficient of variation varied from 10.49% (ratio of leaf length/width) to 106.38% (corolla tube length of ray florets). Broad sense heritability estimates were higher (>96%) for most of the characters, except for traits such as ratio of leaf length/width and peduncle thickness. Forty-four pair-wise inter-trait combinations showed positive genotypic and phenotypic correlations for 91 possible combinations.D2analysis revealed that genotypes of clusters I and IV to be highly distinct, and hybridization between them might have better chance to obtain desirable types.D2analysis confirmed that the cultivars in cluster IV namely, Red D Spoon, Tokyo Soldier, Yellow Reflex and hierarchical clustering showed that the cultivar Tokyo Soldier to be highly diverse. It is recommended to use the above genotypes in crossing programme for obtaining better progenies.

Assessment of the Effects of NPK on Flowering Characters of Gladiolus (Gladiolus grandiflorus L.) cv. Big Time Supreme

Aim: Gladiolus the most important cut flower crop and as it has great demand in national and international flower market it is worthwhile to apply the experimental trial on it, in respect to estimate the flowering characters of Gladiolus.
 Place and duration of Study: The field experiment was conducted at Horticultural Research Farm-I, Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (A Central University), Lucknow, (U.P), India. During the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 rabi seasons.
 Results: Replicated thrice having twenty three treatments in each replication. The minimum days taken to emergence of spike (102.21 and 101.04 days), The maximum number of spikes per plant (1.29 and 1.30), The minimum days to first floret opening (109.25 and 110.25 days), The maximum duration of flowering (15.55 and 15.85 days), The highest length of spike (87.35 and 88.05 cm), The highest number of florets per spike (15.12 and 16.13), The maximum diameter of floret (9.25 and 9.42 cm) and The maximum length of floret (9.85 and 9.92 cm) with the application of N 20g + P 15g + K 15g (T16). Moreover, the treatment T16 showed the best results on flowering characters of gladiolus. Appeared as the best practice for better flowering and therefore it may be recommended to boost up flower production and quality of gladiolus.

Effect of Wrapping Materials and Storage Time on Shelf Life of Tuberose (Polianthes tuberosa L.)

Background: The use of wrapping material during storage of cut flowers creates a modified atmosphere which reduces flower metabolism during storage, thereby slowing carbohydrate consumption as respiratory substrate. The main problem related to dry storage is moisture loss or desiccation. Keeping in view the above aspects, the present study was conducted to enhance the shelf life of tuberose.Methods: The experiment was carried out at Post-Harvest Laboratory of Department of Horticulture, COA, CCS HAU, Hisar during the cropping season (March to September) of year 2019. It was laid out in CRD (factorial) with three replications and twenty-four treatment combinations, comprising of six wrapping materials (newspaper, butter paper, chart sheet, low density polyethylene of 100µ, high density polyethylene of 200µ and control as without wrapping) and four storage time (1, 4, 7 and 10 days), were tested. After harvesting, cut spikes were wrapped in wrapping materials and kept in cold-store at low temperature (less than 5°C), thereafter cut spikes were placed in vase solution (4% sucrose plus 300 ppm 8-HQC) for recording observations on floral parameters. Result: Among different wrapping materials, the butter paper wrapped cut spikes observed better in most of the parameters followed by LDPE (100µ) wrapped cut spikes. Among the storage time, storage of cut spikes for 1 day observed better in most of the parameters except time taken up to opening of first pair of florets and total post-harvest life. Overall, butter paper wrapped cut spikes stored for 1 day performed better in term of floret diameter (46.73 mm), floret length (56.10 mm), floret longevity (2.89 days), appearance (3.70/5.0 scale), florets opened at a time (32.30%), total opened florets (54.32%), marketable vase life (6.53 days), total vase life (11.17 days), weight loss (17.08%) and solution consumed (135.33 ml) by the spikes. However, the cut spikes wrapped in butter paper stored for 10 days were found better with early opening of first pair of florets (0.95 days) and maximum post-harvest life (20.10 days).

Taxon delimitation, chromosome numbers and genetic diversity of Paspalum polyphyllum and P. bicilium (Poaceae, Paspaleae)

The South American Paspalum polyphyllum and P. bicilium need accurate species delimitation. The aim of this study was to assess morphological variation, through morphometric analysis of specimens from natural populations, chromosome number and genetic diversity of populations based on inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) molecular markers, to test taxonomic relationships among these species and other related species. We analyzed 183 individuals of P. polyphyllum and P. bicilium from 31 natural populations from Brazil, Argentina and Bolivia. Multivariate analyses from 23 morphological characters allowed the distinction of P. bicilium from P. polyphyllum, and the most important characters were: rachis width, spikelet and upper floret length. For both species, most of the genetic diversity was shown among the populations (88.36% of the total mean variation in P. polyphyllum and 84.31% in P. bicilium), while the diversity within the populations was low (11, 64% and 15.69%, respectively). Cytogenetic studies revealed a new chromosome number (2n = 36) for P. polyphyllum and P. bicilium, and 2n = 46 for P. burmanii. Results obtained made it possible to recognize P. bicilium as a distinct species from P. polyphyllum. We provide a taxonomic treatment including species descriptions, a distribution map, illustrations, and a comparative table for P. bicilium and P. polyphyllum, besides preliminary data for five related species of Paspalum subgen. Ceresia.

Foliar Application of Silicon Enhances Growth, Flower Yield, Quality and Postharvest Life of Tuberose (Polianthes tuberosa L.) under Saline Conditions by Improving Antioxidant Defense Mechanism

Tuberose is native to Mexico and then reached Europe and spread other parts of the world. In Pakistan, tuberose stalks come in the market during late summer and autumn when only few flowers are available. However, yield and quality of flowers stalks is low. Several abiotic factors are involved in poor production of tuberose. Among abiotic stresses, salt stress greatly hampers growth of plants ultimately affecting flower yield, quality and postharvest life of tuberose. Current study aimed at foliar application of silicon (control, 50, 100 and 150 mg L−1) to mitigate adverse effects of salt stress (control, 50 and 100 mM NaCl) in tuberose plants during the years 2018 & 2019. Salinity level of 100 mM NaCl significantly decreased the plant height, number of leaves per plant, root length, stalk length, spike length, floret number/ spike, floret length, floret fresh weight, bulb fresh weight and vase life and these traits increased under foliar application of silicon (150 mg L−1). SOD, POD, CAT, GR and APX activities increased under salinity (100 mM NaCl) and foliar application of silicon (150 mg L−1) as compared to other studied treatments. The significant increase of total soluble protein and proline content was recorded under 100 mM NaCl than control. Foliar spray of silicon (50, 100 and 150 mg L−1) reduced total soluble protein and proline content. Chlorophyll ‘a’, chlorophyll ‘b’ and carotenoids were reduced under 50 and 100 mM NaCl. Current study evaluated that silicon had good potential to alleviate salt stress in tuberose by maintaining metabolic capacities and physiological activities.

Effect of different potting mixtures on growth and flowering characters of Chrysanthemum cv. Haldighati

This study evaluates the effect of different potting mixtures on growth and flowering of Chrysanthemum cv. Haldighati. The experiment was carried out at Agriculture Farm, School of Agricultural Sciences & Technology, RIMT University, Mandi Gobindgarh, Punjab, India. Different treatment methods include mixing sand, soil, cocopeat, ver powder, farmland fertilizer and perlite in equal proportions. Statistical analysis of the data show that the medium combination has a significant influence on the control value. The results show that the overall performance of Chrysanthemum is better in the medium with T7 (Perlite + FYM + garden soil (2:1:1)), but T5 is Vermicompost + FYM + Garden soil (2:1:1) has the highest main branches of each plant and the number of sub-branches per plant, the number of ray florets per flower, the length of ray florets and the width of ray florets. According to the obtained results, it can be concluded that compared with perlite Chrysanthemum, the potting medium treatment combination consisting of Perlite + FYM + garden soil (2:1:1) is most suitable for producing Chrysanthemums. It has been found that the light growth medium is more suitable for plant morphological development and continuous high-quality flower production.

Morphological traits and genetic parameters of Hippeastrum hybridum

Abstract Amaryllis is a bulbous flowering plant that has attracted many florists in Iran in recent years. The present study aimed to explore genetic diversity and quantitative and qualitative yield of imported cultivars and promising genotypes of amaryllis. The research used 16 genotypes based on a randomized complete block design with three replications in the Ornamental Plants Research Center in Iran (2017-2018). Based on the guideline of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV), 17 major traits were selected to assess the genotypes. The differences in genotypes showed a wide diversity in all traits among them. The highest general heritability was observed in flowering period (93.86%) and leaf length (91.24%) and the lowest in the number of florets per branch (20.37%). Overall, most traits had high heritability. The highest number of flowering branches, flowering period, floret length, stalk diameter, leaf number, and leaf length were obtained from ‘Moscow’. The highest peduncle length, floret width, and flowering period were observed in the promising genotype ‘OPRC-202’. The flower form was double in ‘Cherry Nymph’, ‘Dancing Queen’, and ‘OPRC-204’, miniature in ‘Baby Star’, and simple (single-flower) in the other genotypes. Based on the results, the promising genotypes ‘OPRC-202’ and ‘OPRC-204’ have a high potential to be introduced as new competitive cultivars in domestic and international markets. The promising genotypes and cultivars were categorized in four groups. The results showed that major of the diversity in the traits was due to genetic factors and the effect of the environment on these traits was less.

Linkage Map Development by EST-SSR Markers and QTL Analysis for Inflorescence and Leaf Traits in Chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat.).

Chrysanthemums (Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat.) are famous ornamental crops with high medicinal and industrial values. The inflorescence and leaf traits are key factors that affect the yield and quality of chrysanthemum. However, the genetic improvement of those traits is slow within chrysanthemum because of its hexaploidy, high heterozygosity and enormous genome. To study the genetic control of the important traits and facilitate marker-assisted selection (MAS) in chrysanthemum, it is desirable to populate the genetic maps with an abundance of transferrable markers such as microsatellites (SSRs). A genetic map was constructed with expressed sequence tag–simple sequence repeat (EST-SSR) markers in an F1 progeny of 192 offspring. A total of 1000 alleles were generated from 223 EST-SSR primer pairs. The preliminary maternal and paternal maps consisted of 265 marker alleles arranged into 49 and 53 linkage groups (LGs), respectively. The recombined parental maps covered 906.3 and 970.1 cM of the genome, respectively. Finally, 264 polymorphic loci were allocated to nine LGs. The integrated map spanned 954.5 cM in length with an average genetic distance of 3.6 cM between two neighbouring loci. Quantitative trait loci (QTLs) analysis was performed using the integrated map for inflorescence diameter (ID), central disc flower diameter (CDFD), number of whorls of ray florets (NWRF), number of ray florets (NRF), number of disc florets (NDF), number of florets (NF), ray floret length (RFL), ray floret width (RFW), ray floret length/width (RFL/W), leaf length (LL), leaf width (LW) and leaf length/width (LL/W). Overall, 36 (21 major) QTLs were identified. The successful mapping of inflorescence and leaf traits QTL demonstrated the utility of the new integrated linkage map. This study is the first report of a genetic map based on EST-SSR markers in chrysanthemum. The EST-SSR markers, genetic map and QTLs reported here could be valuable resources in implementing MAS for chrysanthemums in breeding programs.

Evaluation of Hybrids and Cultivars of Single type Tuberose (Polianthes tuberosa)

Hybrids and cultivars of single type tuberose was evaluated to fulfill the need to develop new hybrids as demanded by commercial growers. Evaluation of fifteen genotypes showed significant variation in growth, floral and bulb characters. Cultivar Arka Prajwal was significantly superior over all genotypes, which recorded least number of days for opening of 1st floret (78.55 days) with maximum diameter of spike (1.18 cm), length of floret (6.05 cm), weight of individual floret (3.12 g) and weight of spike (121.43 g).The hybrid genotype L1P4 (Variegated X Phule Rajani) was observed to be superior in terms of rachis length (39.78 cm), inter-nodal length (7.25 cm), length of bulb (8.09 cm), diameter of bulb (3.76 cm) and diameter of bulb-lets (1.85 cm). Among the hybrid genotypes L1P4 also recorded maximum plant height (116.39 cm), spike length (109.58 cm), weight of cut spike (105.08 g) and vase life (11.00 days). However, it was foundto be at par for number of florets per spike (57.25), length of floret (5.92 cm) and number of spikes per clump (10.14) with all other cultivars and hybrids tested. From the overall performance, it was found that the cultivar Arka Prajwal was the best. Genotype L1P4 found promising for loose as well as cut flower production because of its number of florets, inter-nodal length and spikes per clump which are important characters considering loose flower for taking maximum number of pickings. However, characters such as rachis length, spike length, vase life and weight of spike which are imperative for cut flowers are also noted superior in genotype L1P4.

Evaluation of Hybrids and Cultivars of Single type Tuberose (Polianthes tuberosa)

Hybrids and cultivars of single type tuberose was evaluated to fulfill the need to develop new hybrids as demanded by commercial growers. Evaluation of fifteen genotypes showed significant variation in growth, floral and bulb characters. Cultivar Arka Prajwal was significantly superior over all genotypes, which recorded least number of days for opening of 1st floret (78.55 days) with maximum diameter of spike (1.18 cm), length of floret (6.05 cm), weight of individual floret (3.12 g) and weight of spike (121.43 g).The hybrid genotype L1P4 (Variegated X Phule Rajani) was observed to be superior in terms of rachis length (39.78 cm), inter-nodal length (7.25 cm), length of bulb (8.09 cm), diameter of bulb (3.76 cm) and diameter of bulb-lets (1.85 cm). Among the hybrid genotypes L1P4 also recorded maximum plant height (116.39 cm), spike length (109.58 cm), weight of cut spike (105.08 g) and vase life (11.00 days). However, it was foundto be at par for number of florets per spike (57.25), length of floret (5.92 cm) and number of spikes per clump (10.14) with all other cultivars and hybrids tested. From the overall performance, it was found that the cultivar Arka Prajwal was the best. Genotype L1P4 found promising for loose as well as cut flower production because of its number of florets, inter-nodal length and spikes per clump which are important characters considering loose flower for taking maximum number of pickings. However, characters such as rachis length, spike length, vase life and weight of spike which are imperative for cut flowers are also noted superior in genotype L1P4.

Performance of Exotic Gladiolus Cultivars under Various Irrigation Regimes

Gladiolus (Gladiolus L. hybrids) is a bulbous cut flower, which produces charming spikes on elongated stems. A study was conducted to evaluate the performance of various exotic gladiolus cultivars, viz. ‘Bangladesh’, ‘Essential’, ‘Nova Zambla’ and ‘White Prosperity’ under various irrigation regimes during 2017-2018. Corms were imported from Stoop Flower Bulbs, Holland, transported to laboratory from cold store, and acclimatized at ambient temperature for a week before sowing. Experiment was set up in a polyhouse in plastic crates according to completely randomized design with three replications each having 18 corms planted in a crate. Five irrigation regimes, viz. 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 days interval, were adopted for all the cultivars under study. Irrigation water was applied until saturation of the soil. Results depicted that gladiolus cultivars ‘Essential’ and ‘Nova Zambla’ produced early flowering with greater stem length, stem fresh and dry weights, leaf area, spike length and number of florets. Best quality flowers were obtained when plants were irrigated at 10 days interval, followed by 15 and 20 days interval, while poor quality stems were produced when plants were irrigated at 5 or 25 days interval, which was either over or under irrigation, respectively. In conclusion, gladiolus cultivars grown at 10 and 15 days irrigation intervals from December to March produced best quality stems and irrigation at 10-15 days interval can be considered as optimal for gladiolus production.

Genetic characterization of anemone‐type chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum morifolium) using floral morphology and SRAP markers

AbstractAn appreciation of the genetic diversity retained in the gene pool of anemone‐type chrysanthemums is needed to drive further genetic improvement of this commercially important ornamental species. Here, a panel of 67 accessions was characterized with respect to both floral morphology, assessed using a set of 12 inflorescence‐associated traits, and to genotype, using sequence‐related amplified polymorphism (SRAP) fingerprinting. Abundant variation and a high level of broad‐sense heritability (>88%) were revealed for all traits except number of tubular floret lobes. Of the possible 66 pairwise inter‐trait combinations, 37 proved to be significantly correlated. A principal component analysis of the trait data showed that the first four principal components explained ~78% of the variance; meanwhile a hierarchical clustering analysis revealed a number of discrete groups reflecting the various cultivated types, but was not predictive of provenance. The SRAP genotyping employed 22 primer combinations and generated 238 informative fragments. A moderately high level of the Jaccard's similarity coefficient (mean 0.67) was calculated for the examined panel. A hierarchical clustering analysis based on the genotypic data revealed four groups, which were clearly reflective of cultivated type; moreover, a comparison of the within‐cluster means for each of the two key anemone‐related traits—tubular floret length and tubular floret length/style length—showed that the genotype‐based clusterings were associated with the anemone levels, albeit imperfectively. A principal coordinate analysis showed that the first two coordinates accounted for about 14% of the total variation. In summary, the present study adds new understanding of the genetic diversity present in the anemone‐type chrysanthemum gene pool, and the findings will lay the foundation for implementing a genotype/phenotype association strategy to reveal the genetic and molecular basis of floral form in this valuable ornamental species.

Evaluation of different Gerbera Cultivars for Growth and Flower Characteristics under Naturally Ventilated Polyhouse under Nagaland Condition

ABSTRACT On- farm trail was conducted in Longleng district of Nagaland during 2016-17 to compare the phonological development and production potential of four varieties of gerbera viz. Silvester, Stanza, Rosalin and Brilliance at farmers field under naturally ventilated polyhouse conditionin Longleng District of Nagaland. Result revealed that Rosalin recorded maximum leaf length (49.68 cm), plant spread (57.82 cm), flower diameter (12.04 cm), diameter of trans floret (7.52 cm), diameter of disc floret (3.4 cm), Peduncle diameter (0.8 cm), length of ray floret (5.44 cm), width of ray floret (1.12 cm), whereas Stanza recorded maximum leaf breadth (19.76 cm), no. of ray floret (73.4 nos.), vase life (13.2 days), Silvester recorded maximum in plant height (52.04 cm), no. of leaf/plant (19.6 nos.) and no. of suckers /plant (2.2 nos.), no. of flowers/plant (8.4 nos.) and Brilliance recorded maximum Peduncle length (70.96 cm). Vase life of flower was recorded significantly higherin Stanza (13.2 days) as compared to other cultivars and minimum with Brilliance (10.8 days). Rosalin and Stanza appears to be the best cultivars under Longleng climatic condition as compared to Silvester and Brilliance in terms of vegetative growth and flowering quality characters.

Effects of Some Mineral Substrates on Qualitative and Quantitative Traits of Tuberose (Plianthes tuberosa L.)

Tuberose is one of the most important aromatic cut flower among ornamental plants that its growth and quality is influenced by the type and percentage of mineral compounds in the substrate. This study was carried out on the basis of a randomized complete design to explore the impact of feldspar, talc, dolomite and tuff minerals at the rate of 10, 20 and 40% incorporated with garden soil and manure on some quantitative and qualitative traits of Tuberose plants. The results showed that the highest stem diameter, floret number, root fresh and dry weight were obtained from plants grown in garden soil + dolomite + manure at the ratios of 40:40:20% and 60:20:20%. The highest stem length, floret fresh weight, content of chlorophyll b and total chlorophyll were detected in the plants treated with garden soil + talc and manure (40:40:20%). Highest daughter bulb perimeter, total bulb weight, and floret dry weight were obtained from plants treated with garden soil + feldspar + manure (40:40:20%). Highest floret length and width were seen in plants grown in garden soil + tuff + manure (70:10:20%) and garden soil + talc + manure (60:20:20%). Plants that were grown in garden soil + feldspar + manure at the ratios of 70:10:20% and 60:20:20% had the highest chlorophyll a content and the lowest daughter bulb perimeter, stem length and width, floret dry weight, width and number of floret, chlorophyll b, and total chlorophyll content respectively. Highest root dry weight was measured in control (garden soil + manure 80:20%) and the lowest root fresh and dry weights and volume were recorded for plants grown in garden soil + tuff mineral soil + manure (40:40:20%). Overall, the use of talc, dolomite, and feldspar at the ratio of 40% as Mg and K supplying minerals can improve growth and biochemical parameters of the Tuberose plant.

Cryopreservation by encapsulation-dehydration affects the vegetative growth of chrysanthemum but does not disturb its chimeric structure

Little is known about the stability of plant chimeras after exposure to liquid nitrogen. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of cryopreservation on the cytogenetic and genetic stability, as well as vegetative and generative growth of chrysanthemums that are a solid mutant (‘Richmond’) or periclinal chimeras (‘Lady Orange’ and ‘Lady Salmon’). The following encapsulation-dehydration protocol of shoot tip cryopreservation was applied: 0.09 M sucrose concentration and 10 µM abscisic acid during a two-week preculture, followed by a 4-day osmotic dehydration and 3-hour desiccation. Both, the cryopreservation-recovered and control plants were characterized by the same relative DNA content and chromosome number (ploidy level). By applying RAPD and ISSR markers, 18 and 1 and 0 polymorphic loci within cryopreservation-derived ‘Lady Orange’ and ‘Lady Salmon’ and ‘Richmond’ were detected, respectively. The recovered after cryopreservation and control plants had the same colour, diameter and fresh weight of inflorescences, as well as length of ray florets. Cryopreservation also did not affect the flowering time in chrysanthemum. The biochemical assay did not reveal any alternations in the level of anthocyanins and carotenoids in flowers. It was noted, however, that some of the leaves of the cryopreservation-recovered plants were shorter and/or narrower. They had a reduced chlorophyll content, and their internodes were shorter when compared to the untreated control. The inflorescences of ‘Lady Salmon’ opened slower, but faded faster. In conclusion, these results illustrate the practicability of a cryopreservation method that completely protects the chimera chrysanthemum identity.

The effect of climate on ornamental traits of chamomile

Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla L.) is one of the most important medicinal plants, and belongs to the family Asteraceae. It has been used in several pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. Nowadays, the introduction of new ornamental plants plays a vital role in floriculture. Because of its numerous interesting characteristics, chamomile can be introduced as an ornamental plant. Environmental effects should be estimated in new cultivars and wild populations. Therefore, we compared eight cultivars and three accessions, from Germany (‘Bodegold’, ‘Goral’, ‘Zolty Lan’, ‘Kamile kultureform’), Italy (‘Italian’), Hungary (‘Hungarian’), and Iran (cultivar ‘Zardband’ and accessions Kazeroon, Khuzestan, and Bushehr). All entries were cultivated in two locations with different climates (tropical and temperate zone). Morphological characteristics were evaluated during the flowering period. Plant height, stem number, receptacle diameter, number and diameter of ray florets were affected by the environmental conditions. The average height of chamomile plants was 42.4 cm under tropical conditions compared with 35.6 cm under temperate conditions. Flower diameter (17.3 mm), number of ray florets (16.6), and length of ray florets (11.0 mm) were higher in the tropical zone than in the temperate climate, but diameters of ray florets (2.28 mm) were greater under temperate climate conditions. According to flower diameter data in temperate (18.0 mm) and tropical (19.9 mm) climates, ‘Bodegold’ from Teekanne Company was the best. Because of its water-efficiency requirement, easy reproduction and high soil salinity tolerance, chamomile could be introduced as an ornamental plant under inappropriate environmental conditions.