Involvement of Ethylene in Physiological Processes Determining the Vase Life of Various Hybrids of <i>Mokara</i> Orchid Cut Flowers
2021
Melada Wongjunta | Chalermchai Wongs-Aree | Shoshana Salim | Shimon Meir | Sonia Philosoph-Hadas | Mantana Buanong
There is limited information about the postharvest performance and physiology of <i>Mokara</i> orchid cut flowers, which are a special group of artificially created trigenetic hybrids of <i>Vanda</i> × <i>Arachnis</i> × <i>Ascocentrum</i>. Therefore, we first characterized the patterns of various physiological parameters during vase life of five <i>Mokara</i> hybrids, which differ in their longevity. Then, we examined the effects of ethephon and ethylene inhibitors on these physiological parameters, and on parameters of the ethylene biosynthesis pathway, during vase life of two selected <i>Mokara</i> hybrids, “Moo-deang” and “Dao-lai”, which showed significant differences in their vase life duration and senescence symptoms. The results demonstrate that the differences in vase life longevity among the five <i>Mokara</i> hybrids are due to differences in their ethylene production rates, which regulate flower development processes expressed in bud opening and floret senescence. The results clearly show that ethylene is involved in the regulation of the <i>Mokara</i> flower senescence, and pretreatment with ethylene inhibitors significantly improved their vase life longevity. Thus, ethylene seems to be the main factor that determines the longevity differences of the <i>Mokara</i> hybrids, rather than their water relations parameters. This study can serve as a research tool for developing effective postharvest treatments for <i>Mokara</i> hybrids.
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