Amna Zahid 1,*, Rabia Zahid 1, Ahsan Akram1, Umar Bilal1 and Muhammad Umair2
1Institute of Horticultural Sciences, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan; 2Postharvest Research and Training Centre (PRTC), Institute of Horticultural Sciences, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan
*Corresponding author: amnazahid672@gmail.com
Gladiolus (Gladiolus grandiflorus L.) is a perennial flowering plant cultivated as a relishing spring cut flower in the plains of Pakistan. The cut stems of gladiolus remain metabolically active by utilizing the stored tissue substrate, but that is insufficient to keep them fresh not more than a few days. Keeping them fresh for a longer period is the topic of interest for both the growers and the florists. In this regard, an experiment was enacted to assess the comparative effect of three organic preservatives, namely chitosan, thymol, and eugenol, in extending the vase life of gladiolus. The observational units used in this experiment were at the same stage of maturity. Cut stems of cultivar “White Prosperity” were harvested from a private commercial flower farm, namely “Zarkhaiz Farm, Qasur. The treatment combinations comprising eighteen treatments in vase solution were kept at 20, 40, 60, 80, 100, and 120mg/L of three organic chemicals in the same concentration compared with the control (distilled water). Data was collected regarding various parameters, including vase life of spike, average life of flower, time to start wilting, petal browning, flower quality, relative fresh weight, dry weight % age, solution uptake, floret diameter, solution uptake of Gladiolus flower, and number of florets open. The experiment was executed according to a completely randomized design (CRD) under factorial arrangements with eighteen treatments and replicated thrice. The data was evaluated through Fisher’s Analysis of variance technique, and treatment means were compared using Tukey’s Test at 5% level of significance.