Effects of age and cold storage of transplants on the growth and quality of broccoli heads

Abstract

In the two-factor field experiment conducted in 2002-2004 the effect of transplant age and the time of storage on the yield of broccoli cv. ‘Lord’ F1 was investigated. Transplants were stored in freon cold room without access to light at +2°C and a relative air humidity of 80-85%. Both investigated factors had no significant effect on crop acceleration. Plants obtained from 4-week old transplants gained marketable yield significantly higher than plants obtained from 10-week old transplants. Significantly higher yield was obtained from transplants stored in a cooling room as compared to non-stored transplants. No univocal effect of the transplant age on the percentage of hollow stems was demonstrated. © 2007, Versita. All rights reserved.