DIAGNOSIS AND RECOMMENDATION INTEGRATED S YSTEM BY SAP ANALYSIS FOR HORTICULTURAL CROPS - 1) A STUDY ON THE STANDARDIZATION OF PREPARING SAMPLES FOR ANALYSIS

Methods of preparing materials for sap analysis of petioles of tomato and leaflets of rose were studied; the proposed standard is as follows ; 1. Plant samples should be cut into small pieces and mixed with dist illed water in the ratio less than 1 : 5. Then the sample is homogeniz ed for 30 seconds together with a small amount of activated carbon. 2. The homogenate is filtered through a filter paper and the filtrate is analyzed. For macroelement analysis, fresh extract should be analyzed as it is, whereas for microelement analysis, the extracts are acidifi ed with 0.1 N HCl to ensure that the microelements in the extracts are completely dissolved. 3. For the concentration of minerals in the sap , analytical data should be corrected according to the plant sample : water ratio used for the extraction and the dilution factor.