SOLUTIONS AND REFRIGERATION FOR EXTENDING THE POSTHARVEST LIFE OF ROSE cv. ‘BLACK MAGIC’

Abstract

‘Black Magic’ roses (Rosa hybrida L.) are produced in the State of México because of its high demand throughout the whole year, and particularly in holidays (valentine’s day, mother’s day and december 12th). Since the main postharvest problem of this cultivar is the rapid wilting generated by low water absorption, in this study we compared three preservative solutions based on 8-hidroxyquinoleine citrate (HQC) against a commercial product. The variables considered were: flower opening, stem fresh weight, water consumption, leaf abscission, area of petals, and dry and specific weight of petals. Results show that the best solution to preserve floral stems of rose cv. ‘Black Magic’ is the commercial product Chrysal RVB®, followed very closely by HQC (50 mg L^-1) plus aminooxiaceticacid (16 mg L^-1) by extending the postharvest life for up to 10 d, and keeping quality in terms of larger floral aperture, higher fresh weight of floral stems, constant water consumption and lower leaf abscission.