Use of Controlled Water Deficit to Regulate Poinsettia Stem Elongation

Alem, Peter; Thomas, Paul A.; Iersel, Marc W. van

doi:10.21273/hortsci.50.2.234

Cited by 13 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Although reducing substrate VWC can improve aesthetics and structural properties of certain bioplastic containers, reducing the amount of moisture applied impacts plant size. Our results agree with other research that has shown plants grown at lower substrate VWC were smaller than plants grown at a higher VWC (Alem et al, 2015;Bayer et al, 2013;Litvin et al, 2016). .…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

“…postulated that moisture management during plant production affected the appearance of certain bioplastic containers, and proliferation of algae on the surface of peat-based biocontainers was attributed to irrigation practices and absorption of water by the containers . Research shows that plant growth can be controlled without compromising plant quality by reducing substrate VWC (Alem et al, 2015;Bayer et al, 2013;Litvin et al, 2016). Though we have found no reports quantifying the effect of VWC on bioplastic container appearance and strength, we contend that reducing substrate VWC may also reduce algae growth and improve appearance of certain bioplastic biocontainers.…”

Section: Tables Andmentioning

confidence: 87%

“…Based on the lack of differences in WUE despite difference in growth, our results suggest bedding plant producers may be able to effectively restrict plant size of the taxa we used without reducing the efficiency of water applied between 0.20 m3•m-3 and 0.40 m3•m-3 VWC. Ultimately, this may enable producers to grow bedding plants to a target size using specific substrate VWCs, similarly to poinsettia grown byAlem et al (2015). Screening additional taxa for tolerance of reduced substrate VWC may be valuable for bedding plant producers seeking non-chemical means of controlling growth of annual bedding plants.ConclusionsReducing substrate VWC can improve post-production aesthetic quality of bioplastic plant containers manufactured with compostable or biodegradable plantprotein-based components like SP.A and BR, but ultimately these containers may have less-than-perfect appearance compared to containers made of petroleum-based plastic or durable bioplastics such as PLA-lignin.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Quantifying the Effects of Crop-cultural Practices on Growth and Development of Herbaceous Annuals and Perennials in Novel Bioplastic Biocontainers

Flax

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Section: Tables Andmentioning

confidence: 87%

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confidence: 99%

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Quantifying the Effects of Crop-cultural Practices on Growth and Development of Herbaceous Annuals and Perennials in Novel Bioplastic Biocontainers

Flax

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“…Poinsettia is an obligate short day/long night photoperiodic plant and therefore has distinct vegetative growth and reproductive development stages during greenhouse production. The timing of application of water deficit affected poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima 'Classic Red') stem elongation depending on growth and development stage (Alem et al, 2015a(Alem et al, , 2015b. Periods of 20% SMC application were used for height control when plant height exceeded the target height using graphical tracking.…”

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confidence: 99%

Reducing Substrate Moisture Content during Greenhouse Production of Poinsettia Improves Postproduction Quality and Economic Value

Guo¹,

Starman²,

Hall³

2018

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The objective was to determine the effect of substrate moisture content (SMC) during poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima) greenhouse production on plant quality, postproduction longevity, and economic value. Two experiments were conducted, one in 2016 with ‘Freedom Red’ and the other in 2017 with ‘Christmas Eve Red’. Treatments included two SMC levels (20% or 40%) applied in four timing of application combinations. Total production (TP) time was 14 (2016) or 12 (2017) weeks in which vegetative production (VP) occurred from week 33 (2016) or 35 (2017) to week 39 and reproductive production (RP) continued from week 40 to 47. The four timing of application treatments were 40/40 = TP at 40% SMC; 20/40 = VP at 20% + RP at 40%; 40/20 = VP at 40% + RP at 20%; 20/20 = TP at 20% SMC. After simulated shipping in the dark, plants were evaluated in a simulated retail environment with two packaging treatments: no sleeve covering or plastic perforated plant sleeves covering container and plant. At the end of greenhouse production, plants grown in 20% SMC during RP (20/20 and 40/20) had shorter bract internode length, stem length, and smaller growth index (GI), decreased shoot and root dry weight (DW), and bract and leaf surface area compared with those in 40% SMC during RP (40/40 and 20/40). Photosynthetic rate was higher when plants were watered at 40% SMC regardless of production stage compared with those in 20% SMC. Leaf thickness, petiole thickness, total bract and leaf number were unaffected by SMC treatments. Plants in 20% SMC during RP (20/20 or 40/20) had earlier bract coloring despite days to anthesis being the same for all SMC treatments. Compared with 40/40, 40/20, and 20/20 could save 44.2% or 43.6%, respectively, irrigation and fertilizer usage, and 39.1% and 47.8%, respectively, labor time. During postharvest, ethylene concentration was unaffected by packaging method. Sleeved plants, regardless of SMC treatment, received lower light intensity in the middle of the plant canopy, causing plants to have lower total leaf number due to abscission and SPAD reading at the end of postproduction. The 40/40 treatment abscised more bracts during five weeks (in 2016) of postproduction and with no sleeve had higher number of bracts with bract edge burn (BEB). In summary, reducing SMC to 20% during TP or RP reduced water usage during production and produced more compact plants with increased postproduction quality.

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“…Additionally, using regulated deficit irrigation can suppress stem elongation of flowering potted plants, such as poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima Willd. ex Klotzsch), providing adequate height control during production [11]. While controlling the substrate VWC clearly has potential for use in containerized herb production, data specific to the effects of substrate VWC on containerized herb growth are lacking.We have found some limited reports on the effects of substrate moisture on containerized perennial herb growth [8,9].…”

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confidence: 99%

Substrate Volumetric Water Content Controls Growth and Development of Containerized Culinary Herbs

et al. 2019

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There are no chemical plant growth retardants that may be used on containerized culinary herbs intended for consumption. Our objective was to quantify the effect of substrate moisture content on the growth of four commonly produced culinary annual herbs grown in containers in the greenhouse. Seedlings of basil (Ocimum basilicum L.), dill (Anethum graveolens L.), parsley (Petroselinum crispum (Mill.) Fuss), and sage (Salvia officinalis L.) were transplanted into 11.4 cm diameter containers filled with commercial soilless substrate comprising (by vol.) 75% sphagnum peat moss and 25% coarse perlite and amended with 3.0 kg·m −3 of controlled-release fertilizer. After the containers were thoroughly irrigated to container capacity, plants were placed into a sensor-controlled irrigation system, which maintained substrate volumetric water content (VWC) at 0.15, 0.28, 0.30, 0.38, or 0.45 m 3 ·m −3 . Chlorophyll fluorescence, photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, and transpiration were measured 27 d after initiating treatments, and the results showed that chlorophyll fluorescence of parsley and photosynthesis of basil increased as substrate VWC increased from 0.15 to 0.45 m 3 ·m −3 ; the remaining parameters for basil, parsley, and sage were unaffected. Additionally, height, width, leaf area, and shoot dry mass of basil, dill, parsley, and sage increased as substrate volumetric water content increased from 0.15 to 0.45 m 3 ·m −3 . Our results show that growth of basil, dill, parsley, and sage can be promoted or inhibited by providing or withholding water, respectively, with no signs of stress or visual damage resulting from reduced substrate volumetric water content. Therefore, restricting irrigation and substrate volumetric water content is an effective nonchemical growth control method for containerized culinary herbs grown in peat-based substrate.Agronomy 2019, 9, 667 2 of 12 basil supplied with 200 mg·L −1 N from a complete, balanced water-soluble fertilizer are 33% larger than plants supplied with 50 mg·L −1 N from the same fertilizer [4]. Additionally, restricting P to 5 mg·L −1 produced basil, dill, parsley, and sage shorter than plants provided with 40 mg·L −1 [5]. While cultivar selection and nutrient management are useful forms of nonchemical growth control, it may be necessary to use multiple nonchemical methods of controlling growth to achieve the degree of control required in the absence of PGRs.Reducing irrigation or substrate volumetric water content (VWC), commonly referred to as "deficit irrigation", is another effective method of controlling containerized plant growth [6][7][8]. The water available for plant uptake increases and growth is promoted as substrate VWC increases and, as such, restricting irrigation and reducing the substrate VWC can diminish turgor pressure and subsequent stem extension and growth [9]. For example, containerized angelonia (Angelonia angustifolia Benth.) and petunia (Petunia × hybrid Vilm.) bedding plant growth is promoted by substrate VWC and, by reducing VWC, compact plants o...

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Use of Controlled Water Deficit to Regulate Poinsettia Stem Elongation

Cited by 13 publications

References 34 publications

Quantifying the Effects of Crop-cultural Practices on Growth and Development of Herbaceous Annuals and Perennials in Novel Bioplastic Biocontainers

Quantifying the Effects of Crop-cultural Practices on Growth and Development of Herbaceous Annuals and Perennials in Novel Bioplastic Biocontainers

Reducing Substrate Moisture Content during Greenhouse Production of Poinsettia Improves Postproduction Quality and Economic Value

Substrate Volumetric Water Content Controls Growth and Development of Containerized Culinary Herbs

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