IMPROVING THE POSTHARVEST PERFORMANCE OF BIRD-OF-PARADISE FLOWERS

The postharvest life of Strelitzia reginae (bird-of-paradise) inflorescences is limited by the opening and longevity of individual florets, and an apparent susceptibility to chilling injury. In the current study, we found that pulsing cut stems with 500 µM thidiazuron (TDZ) for 24 hours at 20°C extended floret longevity by 2.3-3.2 days (20-30%). Pulsing with TDZ plus 20% sucrose increased the number of florets that opened from 1.0 (control) to 2.0 per inflorescence. We also showed that exposing stems to 1 µl/L ethylene for 24 hours at 20°C reduced floret longevity by 5.5 days (43%) relative to control stems. Pre-treatment with inhibitors of ethylene action (500 nl/L 1-methylcyclopropene or 0.2 mM silver thiosulfate) for 6 hours at 20°C reduced the ethylene-related loss in floret life. Short-term (7 days) storage at 0°C did not cause chilling injury to bracts and florets and reduced the loss in vase life associated with storage at 10, 20 or 25°C. Storage at 0°C for 21 and 28 days resulted in chilling injury. Taken together, our findings highlight the potential for TDZ and sucrose pulsing, anti-ethylene treatments, and shipment at low temperature to improve the postharvest performance of bird-of-paradise inflorescences.