interaction of cut flowers on post harvest characteristics of each other in vase solution

abstract reduction of post harvest losses in cut flowers and increasing their vase life, with consideration to high expenses of production is very necessary. one of the effective factors is presence of flowers near each other. this study was performed to investigate the interaction of some important cut flowers on their post harvest characteristics in vase solution (in combination or alone) in 2007- 2008 at post harvest physiology lab of horticulture department of ferdowsi university of mashhad. in the first experiment the effects of gerbera and tuberose and in the second one the effects of daffodil, carnation and gillyflower on their post-harvest characteristics were investigated. results of the first experiment showed that the presence of tuberose and gerbera in a vase solution caused significant reduction of gerbera vase life, but the effect of this factor is not significant on other gerbera characteristics. in addition the effect of gerbera on tuberose was caused significant reduction on tuberose fresh weight. results of the second experiment showed that presence of gillyflowers near daffodils was caused significant reduction of daffodils vase life but the other flowers have not any effect on their vase lives. in the first day, the diameter of carnations flower was also reduced significantly when they were near daffodils in one vase solution. treatments had not significant effects on fresh weight train. vase solution turbidity was higher for those vases for two flowers than one flower. but this difference was significant only about the vase solution of daffodil + carnation. the highest solution ph was observed in the solution of daffodil and carnation alone and they had significant difference with the others.