Abstract
The experiments were conducted to establish a method for marketing budded carnation shoots for Mother's Day. To supply flowers of high quality, we investigated some important conditions as follows; storage potential of the flowers, silver thiosulphate (STS) application to extend vase life, the use of a greenhouse as a forcing room and treatment by commercial forcing solutions.
1. Buds of carnation 'Coral' were forced after various storage periods. A storage period longer than 16 weeks is not advisable because it delays the onset of anthesis. The longest practical storage period is 12 weeks.
2. The carnation shoots stored for 4 weeks at 1 °C were successfully forced in a green house in early May. The color of the petals was nearly normal.
3. After storage for 4 weeks at 1 °C, dipping the cut ends of carnation shoots in 1 mM STS for 2 hr extended the vase life to 26.8 days.
4. High-grade cut flowers for Mother's Day were obtained by using a greenhouse as a forcing room, together with the application of an STS dip after storage, and a treatment with a commercial forcing solution. This forcing method is simple and makes the availability of carnation flowers for Mother's Day predictable.
