The Relationship between Soluble Solids Content and Vase Life of Dendrobium Cut Flowers

Abstract

Many studies in various kinds of flower showed that there is a relationship between the food reserve and the vase life. If there is a relationship between soluble solids content (SSC) and vase life of orchid, SSC can be used as an index of orchid quality. This study aims to evaluvate the relationship between SSC and the vase life of Dendrobium flower. The study was divided into two parts. The first part was the relationship between SSC in the stem of six Dendrobium cvs: Sonia, Lucky, Princess, Sakura, Burana Jade, and Lucky Duan, and Dendrobium ‘Khao Sanan’ having 3, 4, 5, and 6 blooming flowers and their vase life. It was found that there was no correlation between SSC in the flower stem and the vase life (r=0.071, P=0.711). However, there was a slight positive relationship between SSC in the stem of ‘Khao Sanan’ with different number of open flowers and the vase life (r=0.280, P=0.03). The second part was the relationship between SSC in leaves from Dendrobium plant of different age (1, 2 and >2 years) and the vase life of their flowers. Only a slight positive correlation of SSC and the vase life (r=0.183, P=0.025) was found. It was concluded that SSC could not be used as an index of the quality of Dendrobium cut flowers