POSTHARVEST CHARACTERISTICS OF LIMONIUM CHORUS MAGENTA INFLORESCENCES

Water uptake and stem weight of harvested inflorescences of Limonium ' Chorus Magenta' declined rapidly when the stems were placed in water o r a biocide solution, and florets remained open for only c. 5 days aft er harvest. The decline in water uptake and stem weight was greatly re duced by a 24-h wetting-agent pulse treatment of Agral LN or Tween 20 at 0.1 or 1 ml/litre. These treatments extended the period over which flower buds continued to open by c. 5 days. The addition of 50 or 100 g/ litre sucrose to the 24-h wetting-agent pulse treatment extended ne wer bud opening to 16 days. However, the number of open flowers was gr eater when the wetting-agent pulse treatment was followed by a 20 g/li tre sucrose vase-solution treatment.