Effects of Some Essential Oil Compounds on Vase Life of Cut Hydrangea Flowers

The usage of hydrangeas in ornamental plants and especially cut flower has been increasingly important in recent years. one of the most important problems is the short vase life due to early wilting in cut hydrangea flowers. essential oils are safety and ecologically friendly materials and they are used as food, cosmetic and medical purpose. they are also thought to be alternative substances for increasing the vase life of cut flowers. this study was conducted to determine the effects of some essential oil compounds on the vase life of cut hydrangea flowers. hydrangea macrophylla 'ankong rose' variety used as a plant material and 3 different concentrations of thymol and carvacrol (50 mg l^-1, 100 mg l^-1 and 150 mg l^-1) with and without 10 g l^-1 sucrose as a vase solution. vase life, relative fresh weight, solution uptake were recorded. thymol and carvacrol were significantly found effective on vase life of cut hydrangea flowers. the highest vase life (12.14 days) was recorded in thymol (150 mg l^-1)+sucrose which was in the same statistically group with carvacrol (150 mg l^-1)+sucrose. thymol (150 mg l^-1)+sucrose increased the vase life by 41.66% compared to control (distilled water). the study indicated that thymol can be used successfully in increasing cut hydrangea flowers’ vase life.