Date Sept. 1, 1991

Title of Project Year-Round Flowering of Triteleia Laxa ‘Queen Fabiola’ with Ethylene Treatment

Institution where work is being conducted University of Massachusetts-Amherst

Amount of Endowment Grant $ 1,300.00
Covering Period Jan. 1 to Dec. 30

Anticipated Date of Project Completion/Final Report August 31, 1992

Individual(s) Conducting Project:

(List Project Leader First)

Dr. Susan S. Han – Title Assistant Professor

Telephone Number (413)545-5228

Nancy Woycicki – Title Graduate Student

Year-Round Flowering of Triteleia Laxa ‘Queen Fabiola’ with Ethylene Treatment

University of Massachusetts, Amherst

Susan S. Han and Nancy Woycicki

Progress Report to the American Floral Endowment, 9/1/91

A. Project Objectives:

The main objective of this project is to investigate a means of forcing Triteleia laxa (brodiaea)

corms to flower year round. The method proposed in this project is ethylene treatment on brodiaea corms

prior to forcing them in the greenhouse. One of the main problems with forcing brodiaea is the reduction

in flowering percentage with increasing storage time. This reduction in flowering percentage will

ultimately lead to non-flowering plants at the end of the year. Since we have previously demonstrated that

ethylene treatment greatly increases the flowering potential of freshly harvested non-flowering size corms

(corms too small to flower), I propose to investigate if exposure of storage corms to ethylene can

overcome the negative effects of storage on flower production. The positive outcome of this project would

enable growers to supply cut brodiaea flowers year round, and consequently demand for these flowers

would increase.

B. Summary of Work Conducted:

We are currently conducting several experiments simultaneously to investigate the effects of

ethylene on the growth, flowering and physiology of brodiaea plants. All experimental designs are

analogous to those described in the proposal. The only modification was the corm size used in the

experiments. Due to the shortage of corms of specific sizes, we modified each experiment according to the

availability of the corms. Instead of testing corms of 2 sizes (flowering and non-flowering size corm) as

initially proposed, we used 3 sizes in each experiment.

Two experiments are being conducted to test the effects of storage and ethylene on flowering

potential of brodiaea corms. Freshly harvested corms (from 2 different sources) are stored for 0, 3, 6, 9,

and 12 months. Immediately after the storage period, corms are treated with air or ethylene for 7 days

prior to forcing them in the greenhouse. Information obtained from these experiments should indicate to

us the degree of flowering reduction with storage and the possible use of ethylene to overcome the

negative effects. In addition to the production studies, we are investigating the physiological responses of

the plants to the ethylene treatment. Experiments include examination of changes in the size of the apical

meristems and changes in dry weight partitioning between different organs. Results of these experiments

should explain how ethylene affects the flowering of plants, and enable us to determine if the same

treatment can be used to promote flowering of other species of crops.

For practical application of the results, we are investigating if an ethylene-releasing compound

such as ethephon can induce the same promotive effects as ethylene gas. We are testing 2 methods,

submerging corms in the solution for a predetermined amount of time or submerging the corms in solution

and vacuum infiltrating the solution into the corms. The flowering percentage of these treatments will be

compared to the air control and those treated with ethylene gas.

C. Results to Date:

Due to unforeseen lost and delayed in shipment of corms from commercial supplier, the project

was initiated a few months later than I initially proposed. Due to this reason, a second-year proposal

wasn’t submitted to the endowment this year. We will complete the initial proposal next year and a final

report will be submitted. Presently, all experiments are still on-going and no conclusive result can be

reported.

D. Future Plans Covered by the Endowment Grant:

The principal investigator plan to submit a second-year proposal to the endowment for the

completion of this project. Publications in referred journals and trade journals are expected. These

publications will disseminate the information to all levels of individuals in the floral industry.

E. Anticipated Benefits for Floral Industry:

The positive outcome of this project will enable growers to force brodiaea corms to bloom at a predictable

flowering rate and at a lower production cost. In addition, we will provide a schedule for year round

flowering of brodiaea, an important feature for successful introduction of a new crop into commercial

production.

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