Nitrogen Toning and Thidiazuron (TDZ) Improve Pot Plant Quality of Bracteantha bracteata Cultivars Conference Paper uri icon

abstract

  • Bracteantha bracteata (Vent.) Anderb. & Haegi (bracteantha) is a vegetative annual produced as a 12.7-cm potted plant in 6 weeks of greenhouse production. A dense leaf canopy produced with a conventional constant-feed fertilization regime (300 mgL-1 20N-4.4P-16.6K) caused increased disease pressure and lower leaf chlorosis during greenhouse production. During shelf life, lower leaves of plants con-tinued to become chlorotic. The objective was to decrease leaf area and prevent lower leaf chlorosis without affecting harvest time, plant quality or shelf life of two cultivars of three series of bracteantha. The first experiment was to reduce the rate of fertilizer two weeks prior to harvest. Treatments were no fertility reduction (300 mg/liter), 50% reduction (150 mg/liter), and 100% reduction (0 mgL-1). At harvest, plants were evaluated for shelf life in a growth room at 21.1 1.3 C and 6 molm-2s-1 PPF. Five cultivars in the 100% fertility reduction treatment had decreased height and/or width index at harvest and three cultivars maintained higher postharvest quality ratings compared to the other treatments. Separately, the effect of the duration of fertilization was evaluated by terminating fertilization at weekly intervals (0-6 weeks) throughout production. Ceasing fertilization two to three weeks prior to harvest produced plants with lower leaf area without affecting flower number. In another experiment, thidiazuron (TDZ) as a foliar spray at 0, 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0 mgL-1 was applied to decrease lower leaf yellowing. SPAD-502 chlorophyll meter readings of lower leaves were increased with 0.1 mgL-1 TDZ treatment compared to the control. Phytotoxic symptoms occurred on plants receiving higher TDZ rates.

published proceedings

  • HORTSCIENCE

author list (cited authors)

  • Beach, S. E., Starman, T. W., & Pemberton, H. B.

citation count

  • 0

complete list of authors

  • Beach, Shannon E||Starman, Terri W||Pemberton, H Brent

publication date

  • July 2004