Heliconia Genotypes Under Partial Shade: Ii. Evaluation of Flowering Stems

Abstract

Heliconia beautiful tropical flowers are helping to increase profits of cut flower industry worldwide. The inflorescence durability and vivid colors are supporting the commercialization on the international market. In Brazil, Pernambuco State is leading the research, production, and commercialization of heliconia inflorescences. The Federal Rural University of Pernambuco State (UFRPE) maintains its own Heliconia Germplasm Collection, which supplied the 10 genotypes evaluated in this study. The experimental design was randomized complete block design, with four replications. Cultivated in partial shade, the genotypes evaluated during 18 months were: Heliconia bihai; H. bihai 'Nappi Yellow'; H. caribaea x H. bihai 'Carib Flame'; H. collinsiana; H. episcopalis; H. pendula; H. psittacorum x H. spathocircinata 'Golden Torch'; H. rostrata; H. stricta I; and H. stricta II. The flowering stems were collected at harvesting point, according to the genotype features. The evaluated variables were: fresh weight of stem (FWS); stem diameter (SD); stem length (SL); inflorescence length (IL); number of open bracts (NOB); bracts arrangement (BA) and wax on inflorescences (WAX). H. collinsiana and H. rostrata, which have pendant inflorescences, presented higher values of IL and NOB. The heaviest FWS was obtained with H. bihai (470 g) and H. collinsiana (410 g), which would have higher influence on transportation costs. SL varied from 71.60 cm (H. stricta II) to 121.51 cm (H. collinsiana). These results supply information for further studies on plant breeding programs and also show the potential of heliconia genotypes for tropical cut flower industry.

Heliconia phenotypic diversity based on qualitative descriptors

“…In the period from 2007 to 2008, five flowering stems per genotype were evaluated for the descriptors of the pseudostem, leaves, and inflorescences. These descriptors were elaborated according to previous Heliconia studies Costa et al, 2009b), and were also based on the catalog of Musa spp descriptors (Silva et al, 1999), with modifications to accommodate the typical Heliconia morphological features observed, as described below: Pseudostem 1 -pseudostem surface (shade of green): 1 ( ) pale; 2 ( ) yellow; 3 ( ) clear; 4 ( ) dark 2 -wax: 1 ( ) presence; 2 ( ) absence 3 -hair: 1 ( ) presence; 2 ( ) absence 4 -plant height: 1 ( ) short, less than 1.50 m; 2 ( ) medium, 1.51 to 2.50 m mean; 3 ( ) tall, more than 2.50 m 36 -rachis color: different among cultivars 37 -rachis twist: 1 ( ) presence; 2 ( ) absence 38 -rachis stiffness: 1 ( ) presence; 2 ( ) absence 39 -perianth base color: 1 ( ) white; 2 ( ) cream; 3 ( ) yellow 40 -presence of anthocyanin on perianth: 1 ( ) at the baseline; 2 ( ) presence of stripes; 3 ( ) uniform color; 4 ( ) missing 41 -sepal color 42 -petal color 43 -ovary color, immature fruit 44 -presence of pollen: 1 ( ) presence; 2 ( ) absence 45 -blooming period: 1 ( ) short (< 5 months); 2 ( ) average (5 < months < 8); 3 ( ) long (> 8 months)…”

“…For these descriptors, classes were assigned as absence (0) and presence (1), or other contrasting classes, such as light green and dark green, annual and seasonal, upright and pendent, or equal and unequal ( Loges et al (2007) and Costa et al (2009b). **Description based on the catalog of Musa spp descriptors, with modifications.…”

Morphological Characterization in Wild Species of &lt;i&gt;Heliconias&lt;/i&gt; (&lt;i&gt;Heliconia&lt;/i&gt; spp) in Mexico

“…Collinsiana. These samples were collected in Chiapas (C2, C3) and in Veracruz (C4) at an altitude of 596, 402, and 250 m respectively and present a greatest inflorescence length [21].…”

“…Guimarães et al [13] registered the presence of wax in pseudostem on H. bihai whilst Costa et al [21] reported a bigger length in the inflorescence. This variation can be highly influenced by the environment since temperature conditions and rainfalls vary from 26˚C to 1, 968 mm [20].…”

Caracterización de la diversidad genética de cultivares comerciales de heliconias en el centro occidente de Colombia

“…Los descriptores morfológicos se han utilizado frecuentemente para la determinación de la diversidad fenotípica y para la diferenciación de algunos cultivares del género Heliconia e híbri-dos interespecíficos (Berry y Kress 1991, Loges et al 2007, Costa et al 2009, Guimarães et al 2014. Estos descriptores son usualmente multicategóricos y cualitativos, y están relacionados con las funciones estructurales de las plantas y sus características morfológicas, algunos descriptores son binarios cuando se refieren a presencia o ausencia de cierta característica (Guimarães et al 2014).…”