Effect of pulsing with various preservatives on postharvest performance of cut Polianthes tuberosa L. ‘Single’ spikes

In punjab-pakistan,growing tuberose is a profitable business as returns are double than cost despite of certain bottlenecks such as fluctuations in the prices and unawareness of farmers regarding its post-harvest handling. keeping in view high market demand in local flower markets,the present study was conducted to extend the postharvest life of cut tuberose spikes by pulsing cut spikes with various preservatives. among various pulsing treatments,10% sucrose plus 50 mg l-1salicylic acid (sa) for 24 hours proved best with the longest vase life (10.2 d),more number of days required to open 50% florets (5.0 days),maximum dry weight percentage (13.2%) and superior quality spikes (7.6). moreover,longest florets (7.0 cm) with greater floret diameter (4.2 cm),highest percentage of opened florets (90.0%) and minimum ion leakage of florets (140.0%) was recorded for spikes pulsed with 10% sucrose plus 50 mg l-1salicylic acid for 24 hours. on the other hand,highest water uptake (106.0 ml) and the maximum relative fresh weight percentage (109.9%) were observed in cut tuberose spikes treated with 50 mg l-1salicylic acid without sucrose solution. in summary,pulsing of cut tuberose spikes with 50 mg l-1sa with or without 10% sucrose proved effective for extending vase life and improving postharvest performance of cut tuberose spikes. © 2016,university of agriculture. all rights reserved.