Changes in Physiological Properties and Vase Life of Gerbera (Gerbera jamesonii) under Co-Application of Foliar Applied L-Glutamic Acid, Nitrogen and Potassium

Vase life of cut flowers of many gerbera (Gerbera jamesonii) cultivars is typically short because of stem bending; therefore, stem bending that occurs during the early vase life period is a major problem in gerbera. Foliar application of amino acids and inorganic fertilizers is an effective practice to improve plant yield in agriculture and horticulture. This experiment was carried out to improve vase life of gerbera cut flowers through changes in relative fresh weight (RFW), anthocyanin content, electrolyte leakage (EL) and stem bending. The plants were treated by foliar application of 4 and 8 g L-1 L-glutamic acid (GA), 5 and 10 g L-1 potassium (K) and nitrogen (N). The results showed the greatest RFW was observed in flowers sprayed with 4 g L-1 GA, 5 g L-1 N and 5 g L-1 K to be 86.7%. The 20% reduction of EL was observed in flowers treated with co-application of 8 g L-1 GA, 10 g L-1 N and 5 g L-1 K as compared to control. The main enhancement of anthocyanin concentration was corresponded to GA application. Stem bending ranged from 63.1° in gerbera flowers supplied with non-GA, 5 g L-1 N and 5 g L-1 K to 73.9° in control plants. To sum up, 8 g L-1 GA in combination with 5 g L-1 N and 5 g L-1 K was chosen as an optimum treatment to improve vase life and decreased stem bending of gerbera cut flowers.