Abstract
This study was carried out to investigate the possibility of accelerating flowering by applying chilling to corms before planting in Ixia ‘Venus’. Flowering was most advanced by chilling corms with peat moss under wet conditions, and the optimum chilling temperature was 8–12°C. When corms were subjected to chilling at 8°C for 4–8 weeks under wet conditions, flowering became earlier in those chilled for longer periods. When corms were stored at 20°C for various durations under dry conditions before chilling at 8°C for 8 weeks, sprouting became earlier in those stored for longer periods and they all flowered and exhibited full chilling response by chilling after storage for 6 weeks or more. Compared to those stored at 20°C, when corms were stored at 30°C, sprouting was delayed and flowering percentage decreased with increasing storage period. Based on these results, the earliest flowering was obtained when corms were stored at 20°C for 6 weeks or more under dry conditions immediately after digging and then chilled at 8°C for 8 weeks under wet condition. It was also suggested that flowers could be harvested in late December when chilling started in early August.
