PROTECTED CULTIVATION UNIT 3 PROTECTED CULTIVATION OF FLOWER CROPS Protected cultivation technology for flower crops: Hi-tech protected cultivation of cut roses, cut chrysanthemum, carnation, gerbera, asiatic lilies, anthurium, orchids, cut foliages and fillers, integrated pest and disease management, postharvest handling. Commercial crops grown under protected cultivation Rose The planting time for rose is October – December. The rose planted in greenhouse on raised beds distance between plants should be 17 X 45 cm. With this planting distance the 7.5 plants/m2 can be planted. In a greenhouse of size 560 m 2 total 4200 plant required and 1008 m2 sized greenhouse total 7560 plants required. The major varieties for green house are Top secret, Bordeaux, Golden Gates, Grand Galla, First Red, Konfetti, Mercedez, Ravel, Noblesse, Vivaldi, Gold Strike. The yield in case of HTs is 100-150 Stems/sqm per year and in case of medium and small flowered varieties are 200 and 250-350 Stems/sqm per year respectively. Ahmad et al., 2011, compare the growth and yield of five promising cut rose (Rosa hybrida L.) cultivars in two production systems viz. greenhouse and field conditions. All plant growth and physiological indices of the study were higher in greenhouse grown plants as compared with field cultivated. Among cultivars, ‘Rosy Cheeks’ and ‘Whisky Mac’ had vigorous vegetative growth while ‘Amalia’ and ‘Anjlique’ produced higher flower yield of best quality than other cultivars compared in the study. Roses grown in greenhouse produced taller plants (80.6 cm) than grown in the field (68.7 cm). These results suggested that roses can be best grown in greenhouse due to controlled environmental conditions particularly temperature and relative humidity which triggered plant growth as compared with those grown in open field. The results revealed that greenhouse production can increase flower yield as compared with field cultivation. Carnation A rich sandy loam soil is considered best for carnations. The planting time for carnation is September – October. Carnations are planted on raised beds up to 20-30 cm height from ground. The top width of bed should be 100 cm and bottom width 110 cm. The pathway between the two beds should be 50 cm wide. Sterilization of beds may be done with Chloropicrin about10-15 days before planting. Planting distance from plant to plant and from row to row is 15cm. with this planting distance the planting density is 20-30 plants/m2 . The flower yield is 300-400 flower/m2 . Most promising varieties for standard types are Master, Tanga, Sonsara, Laurella, Solar, Dakar, Raggio di Sole, Cabaret and Bagatel, Cherrybag, Fantasia, Picaro, Ondelia, Sintonia, Macarena for spray types. Khanna et al., (1986) in carnation, concluded that cultivar Red King were found to be promising with respect to yield as well as flower quality parameters and found suitable for commercial cultivation under naturally ventilated green house in mid hills of Kumaon Him

1. PROTECTED
CULTIVATION OF
FLOWER CROPS
- For Agriculture Engineers

2. PRESENTED BY
Mr.S.Arul B.E(AE).,M.Tech(AT)
MRT22PGMAT001
Department of Agriculture Technology
Shobhit Institute of Engineering and Technology
Meerut,UP.

3. CONTENTS
1) Protected Cultivation Technology For Flower Crops
2) Cut Roses
3) Cut Chrysanthemum
4) Carnation
5) Gerbera
6) Asiatic Lilies
7) Anthurium
8) Orchids
9) Cut Foliages
10) Fillers
11) Integrated Pest And Disease Management
12) Postharvest Handling

4. PROTECTED CULTIVATION TECHNOLOGY
FOR FLOWER CROPS
Protected cultivation is a process of
growing crops in a controlled environment.
This means that the temperature,
humidity, light and such other factors can
be regulated as per requirement of the
crop. This assists in a healthier and a
larger produce.

5. CUT ROSES
The medium ground shoots
should be cut at 2nd or 3rd
five of leaves. Bending
helps in maintaining
enough leaf area on the
plants to build up a strong
root system. Only weak and
blind shoots are selected for
bending. Growing suckers
should be removed .

6. CUT CHRYSANTHEMUM
Chrysanthemum is a short-
day flower. They need a
blackout screen to minimize
light exposure. In summer,
proper shading measures
should be taken to protect
them from high
temperatures and strong
sunshine. In winter, warm-
keeping measures should be
taken to protect from cold.

7. CARNATION
Carnation is one of the most
important cut flowers in the
world. They are also called
‘clove gilly-flowers’, divine
flowers, clove pinks and
gilly flowers.

8. GERBERA
Gerbera cultivation can
be done under wide
range of climatic
conditions. In tropical
climate, gerbera flowers
are grown in the open
but in subtropical and
temperate climate they
are protected from frost
and cultivated in
greenhouse/shade net
house.

9. ASIATIC LILIES
Humidity The optimum
humidity inside the green
house should be 80 to 85 %.
Bedding media It is
advisable to maintain the
Ph of 6-7 for Asiatic and
longiflorum hybrid groups
and a Ph of 5.5 to 6.5 for
oriental hybrids. The
chlorine in the soil should
not exceed 1.5 mmol/lit.

10. ANTHURIUM
Anthuriums grow best in a
well aeriated medium with
good water retention and
good drainage. A good
medium needs to be able to
anchor the roots and stem
so that the plant will not
topple over as it grows
larger, yet provide sufficient
moisture, nutrients, and
aeration to the plant.

11. ORCHIDS
75% shade net house with 70- 80%
humidity, day temperature of 21 -
29oC and night temperature of 18
to 21oC is ideal for growing this
tropical orchid. In high rainfall
zones, the shade net house should
be provided with a rainshelter.
Propagation: Division of clumps,
keikis, back bulbs and tissue
culture plants.

12. CUT FOLIAGES
Cut foliage describes
the decorative branches cut
from Eucalyptus,
Pittosporum and many
other ornamental plants
and forest trees for use in
bouquets and other flower
arrangements, it is a new
term to many people.

13. FILLER
A filler flower is a type or
“style” of flower used in
floral design with the
purpose to act as a bulk fill-
in for a floral arrangement
or bouquet, cover gaps and
blank space in the
arrangement, and cover
floral mechanics.

14. INTEGRATED PEST AND DISEASE
MANAGEMENT
Integrated pest management
(IPM), also known as
integrated pest control (IPC)
is a broad-based approach
that integrates both chemical
and non-chemical practices
for economic control of pests.
IPM aims to suppress pest
populations below the
economic injury level (EIL).

15. POSTHARVEST HANDLING
Once bunched, flowers
should be hydrated, placed
in water for awhile before
they are packed dry. The
hydrating step should
include a step where, after
the flowers are bunched,
the stems are recut under
water to eliminate any air
bubbles in the xylem that
can block the uptake of
water.

16. CONCLUSION
Protected cultivation also enables growers to realize greater
returns per unit of land and offer other benefits like, early
harvest, longer harvest duration, reduce leaching of
fertilizers and eco-friendly management of pest, weed and
disease.