Type of Document	Master's Thesis
Author	Young, John Burke, Jr.
Author's Email Address	jyoung8@lsu.edu
URN	etd-0403103-220359
Title	Field Grown Cut Flower Production in Southern Louisiana
Degree	Master of Science (M.S.)
Department	Horticulture
Advisory Committee	Advisor Name Title Jeffery S. Kuehny Committee Chair Allen Owings Committee Member Gordon Holcomb Committee Member Paul Wilson Committee Member
Keywords	Zinnia cutflowers Gladiolus Celosia scheduling Helianthus
Date of Defense	2003-03-26
Availability	unrestricted
Abstract Specialty cut flowers are nontraditional cut flowers used primarily in floral arrangements. Most specialty cut flowers are grown in an open field and production is dependent on a combination of climactic factors, which in turn affects the number of days to harvest and yield. Scheduled plantings of Celosia argentea var. cristata L., Helianthus annuus L., Zinnia elegans Jacq., and Gladiolus X hortulanus L. H. Bailey were conducted to determine the effect of time on the number of days to harvest and yield. Plants were grown in an open field from February to August in 2001 and 2002. Days to harvest decreased for the later planting dates of Gladiolus and Zinnia, but varied between planting dates for Celosia and Helianthus. Postharvest longevity of pollen-producing and pollenless cultivars was found to be similar, but longevity appears to be cultivar dependent. Few differences in yield for branching cultivars of Celosia and for two cut stem lengths of Zinnia were found over the planting dates. Scheduled plantings of cut flowers are necessary for season-long production of a particular crop however; days to harvest and yield may vary throughout the growing season for a particular crop.
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