POST-HARVEST MANAGEMENT IN ORCHIDS

Orchids flowers require proper post-harvest handling and care to reach customers in the best possible form
FACTOR AFFECTING POST-HARVEST QUALITY

 Flower maturity  Disease

 Food supply  Temperature
 Light  Water supply
 Bacterial plugging  Air embolism
 Water quality  Physiological plugging
 Growth tropisms  Mechanical damage
 Ethylene
POST-HARVEST MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES
 Harvesting  Grading
 Bunching  Chemical solutions
 Rehydration  Pulsing
 Bud opening  Tinting
 Packing  Cooling
 Retails handling  Vase solutions
 Drying
 TREATMENT FOR IMPROVING LONGEVITY OF CUT FLOWERS

1.Phyical Treatments
Pre-cooling:
 Desired temperature before packing:
Cattleya - 7 – 10 c
Cymbidium and Paphiopedilum - 0.5 – 4 c
Dendrobium - 5–7c
Vase life of cut flowers as affected by stem cut ends:
 Re-cutting stems under water improves longevity due to elimination of air
from conducting vessels
Chemical treatments:
 Conditioning:
De-mineralized water + germicides and + citrus acid

( pH 4.5 to 5.0 but with or without sugar)

 Impregnation:
Silver nitrate
Nickel chloride
Cobalt chloride
( high concentration (1000 ppm – 1500 ppm) of for 10 – 15

minutes – cymbidium,phalaenopsis).
 Pulsing:
Sugar STS AgNO3 HQ
MH AOA CaCl2 CoCl2
Nickel sulphate Aluminium sulphate Benzyladenine
Eg:
 Cymbidium hybrid ‘Red Princess’ - 5% sucrose (56 days)
 Aranda - 4mM STS (10 mins)
 Dendrobium hybrid - 25ppm AgNO3 +135NA2S2O3,
5H2O (30 mins)
 Oncidium - AgNO3(30 mins)
 Phalaenopsis - 0.5mM STS (24 hours blocks
deleterious effect of ethylene)
 Bud opening:
 Dendrobium hybrids - HQS or AgNO3 (50 ppm)
 Cymbidium cv.’Ensikhan’ - 4% sucrose + 100ppm acetyl salicyclic
acid or 4% sucrose + 100ppm Al2(SO4)3
Preservatives:
 Metallic salts
 silver nitrate
 cobalt chloride
 aluminium sulphate
 zinc sulphate
 calcium nitrate
 growth regulators – BA,IAA,NAA,2,4,5-T,GA3,B9,CCC