ABSTRACT

Over the past 50 years, the cut –ower market has changed dramatically, from a local market with growers located on city outskirts, to a global one; –owers and cut foliage sourced from around the world are sold as bunches or combined into arrangements and bouquets in the major target markets, such as North America, Japan, and the European Union. Items in a single –orist arrangement often originate from countries in three or more continents. The high value of cut –owers has driven major increases in production in many developing countries. Production of cut –owers and foliage can be highly pro‹table in countries with an ideal growing environment (particularly those close to the equator where the environment is uniform throughout the year) and low labor costs. The costs of

I. Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 333 II. Factors Affecting the Postharvest Life of Ornamental Geophytes ....................................... 334

A. Genotypic Variability ..................................................................................................... 335 B. Postharvest Temperature ................................................................................................ 336 C. Controlled and Modi‹ed Atmospheres .......................................................................... 337 D. Water Relations ............................................................................................................... 338

1. Cut Flowers ............................................................................................................... 338 2. Potted Plants ..............................................................................................................340