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Increasing anthurium flower production and shelf life
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David A. Christopher, Robert E. Paull and Daniel Hayden College of
Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu,
Hawaii 96822 |
Anthuriums are a major
cut flower produced in Hawaii with annual sales ranging from $5 to 7 million for
approximately 9-10 million stems sold (Hawaii Agricultural Statistics Services,
1996). The high quality of Hawaii-grown
Anthuriums are recognized and prized worldwide. Superior shelf life is also a
key factor when wholesalers and retailers consider purchasing from a flower supplier.
When handled and treated properly, cut flowers from some Anthurium varieties have a
two-week vase life. However, the long distance of Hawaii from major consumers
requires extended shipping times that can accelerate aging and reduce quality.
Furthermore, Anthurium leaf aging, which is technically termed senescence, reduces flower
yield. Aging is a problem especially when plants are subjected to extreme
environments in the field or during shipping and handling. This project aims to use
biotechnology to control senescence of Anthuriums, which would enhance flower
productivity and post-harvest life of these perishable tropical flowers, greatly
improving their value. New hope for increasing plant yield by reducing
senescence has come from research on plant hormones in model plant systems, such as Arabidopsis.
It was found that a natural plant hormone termed, cytokinin, plays an important
anti-aging role in plants. By modulating cytokinin levels using biotechnology,
scientists were able to extend the lifetime of the plant tissue significantly,
increase flower production and seed yield 1.5-fold. Recently, we have shown that
cytokinin treatments extend the life of Anthurium flowers several-fold. We have
obtained the gene controlling cytokinin production in plants and are developing
methods to regulate its activity so that it is activated during the early stages of
aging in Anthurium leaves and flowers. The next goal is to introduce this gene
into Anthurium where it would be expressed and increase the lifetime
and productivity of the genetically engineered plants. Based on the model system
and our preliminary results, it is likely that this technology will increase flower
production 1.3 to 1.5 fold and increase the vase life of the flower from 15 to 25-30
days. 
Genetically increased shelf life will reduce post-harvest losses, improve
marketability, increase consumer acceptance and reduce labor-intensive treatments
needed to increase shelf life. With the lessened risk associated with post-harvest
handling, shippers and wholesalers will have more flexibility in their marketing
operations involving Anthuriums. Also, reduced leaf senescence (see Fig. 2) will
increase flower production with the same economic inputs. Taken together, the
potential impacts of this research will decrease costs and improve the
competitive edge of Hawaii-grown Anthuriums exported to the US mainland, Japan
and European markets. Techniques developed in this work are likely to
be applicable to other floral and non-floral tropical ornamentals. This work is
being conducted by graduate student Daniel Hayden, Plant Molecular Biologist, David
Christopher, and Plant Physiologist, Robert Paull. |
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