Quality Achieved in Fast Crop Pot Mum Production
Subject:
Pennsylvania Flower Growers #176
Abstract:
Since the development of the fast crop method of growing potted chrysanthemums as described in the Pennsylvania Flower Growers Bulletin No. 162 of July, 1964, there has been a constant effort to improve the appearance of mums grown by this method for greater acceptance by the commercial grower. The mums produced by this method tended to be larger and more succulent than desired by many retail florists. This experiment was designed to produce a more balanced plant which would lie more compact, have a high flower count, and sturdy stems which would not require staking or tying. The means for achieving this were thought to lie in a specific combination of timing, fertility, and watering schedules. By eliminating the long day period from the schedule it was expected that the plant would be shorter. Three frequencies of watering were used and were split into three consecutive cycles during the length of the crop growth. A large amount of water was given during the period of crop growth. A large amount of water was given during the first three weeks to encourage heavy breaking. From the fourth to the seventh week, stem elongation occurs and at this time the water was cut down to suppress this elongation. The last three weeks was the period of flower development and large amounts of water were again applied to give good flower size.
Keywords: More succulent balanced plant Suppress this elongation three consecutive cycles nitrate
Libraries: Floriculture