AOA AND BA INFLUENCE ON FLORAL DEVELOPMENT AND LONGEVITY OF POTTED VICTORY PARADE MINIATURE ROSE

Miniature rose (Rosa hybrida L. cv. Victory Parade) plants were treated with AOA, BA, or STS before simulated shipment and display in an interior environment. Although AOA-treated plants lasted slightly longer than nontreated plants, their postproduction quality, evaluated as floral longevity, bud drying, and bud abscission, was not as satisfactory as that of STS- or BA-treated plants. In this ethylene-sensitive cultivar, BA treatment was almost as satisfactory as STS treatment. Flowers that opened in the greenhouse before shipping lasted longer than those that opened in the interior environment room. STS and BA treatments increased the longevity of both flower types. However, these treatments did not eliminate the difference between flowers that opened before or after transport simulation.