Effect of storage temperature and harvest bud maturity on bud opening and vase life of Paeonia lactiflora cultivars

Six Paeonia lactiflora cultivars ('Coral Sunset', 'Festiva Maxima', 'Maestro' 'Nick Shaylor', 'Pink Hawaiian Coral', 'Sarah Bernhardt') were studied to determine whether postharvest storage temperatures (0-7degreesC) impacted on postharvest quality of flowers that had been harvested at different bud maturities. The flowers of each of the cultivars differed in their response to postharvest storage temperatures for particular bud harvest maturities. The development of harvested buds in cold storage was affected by both bud maturity at harvest and the temperature that the buds were stored after harvest. The open vase-life of flowers was unaffected by postharvest storage temperatures (0-7degreesC) but bud maturity at harvest did impact on the open vase-life of one cultivar ('Festiva Maxima'). For 'Festiva Maxima'. buds harvested at less mature stages had a greater open vase-life than those harvested at more mature stages. The current research shows that maintaining low postharvest Storage temperatures (<8degreesC) for short-term storage of P. lactiflora cultivars slows bud development, thereby influencing flower maturity at export destinations while not impacting on the open vase-life of the cut flowers.