2018 Volume 17 Issue 1 Pages 11-18
The effects of cold storage (i.e., 5°C storage until pre-treatment) and the pre-treatment temperature (i.e., 25°C or uncontrolled temperature storage between cold storage and planting) on bulb quality during storage and growth and scale leaf formation after planting in spring-harvesting cultivation of Allium × wakegi Araki ‘Kan Shirazu’ were investigated as compared with the conventional storage method of hanging under eaves. Cold storage of the bulbs after harvesting inhibited the deterioration of the bulbs as compared with the conventional method, and the quality of the seed bulbs was better with a longer cold storage period. The rate of softened bulbs at the end of December was approximately 45% under conventional storage, and cold storage of the bulbs at 5°C from mid-July reduced the value to less than 15%. On the other hand, cold storage tended to accelerate scale leaf growth after planting, but the pre-treatment at 25°C or an uncontrolled temperature after cold storage effectively reduced scale leaf formation. Pre-treatment at 25°C or long-term pre-treatment at an uncontrolled temperature after cold storage, however, resulted in deterioration of the bulbs during the pre-treatment. It is, therefore, recommended for seed bulbs to be stored at 5°C until the end of October or later, being shorter than 60 days before planting, and for them to be pre-treated at an uncontrolled temperature afterward.
