ETHYLENE: How to Detect in a Greenhouse

Orchid Doctor

by Robert M. [Bert] Hamilton (Compiler)

Originally published in The Orchid Doctor in 1980 and 1988

Posted by Sys Admin over 7 years ago.

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Opening buds of white cattleyas will bleach to green or cream; lavender flowers to pink; if concentration is low only the tips of sepals will be affected; there is no simple chemical test for it. A71-439
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Ethylene Comments
ETHYLENE: Cause of Bud Drop It is reported that spraying flowers with a weak solution of silver nitrate can prevent damage; no source given. 0IE85Jy-13 0
ETHYLENE: Controls A product called "Ethysorb", a granular mix of Aluminum oxide and Potassium permanganate, placed in a quilt or a perforated tube absorbs ethylene; a tube costs 25 pounds and lasts three months, with refills available. OR81-186 0
ETHYLENE: Damage to Plants Orchids are the most sensitive of all plants to ethylene; 1 part in five hundred million will injure opening flowers on cattleyas; references given. 72-534; mature flowers are more resistant than buds. A70-535; OD65-400+; other characteristics. OR74-269+; OR74-298+ 0
ETHYLENE: Effect on Buds It does not affect buds or sepals before the flowers open (it says right here); other factors cause bud drop, such as paint inside a water tank (what?). A81-150; bud drop.A82-487 0
ETHYLENE: Effect on Cymbidiums Plants subjected to ethylene showed leaf yellowing after two days and were completele defoliated within one week; plants were placed close to a stack of ripening apples. AU81-101 0
ETHYLENE: Filter Systems Activated charcoal in filter systems have proven successful in protecting greenhouses in San Francisco area from "oxident" and ozone damage but even brominated charcoal has failed. OD65-402; brominated activated charcoal removed every trace of ethylene if the air stream is first passed through a dryer to reduce the relative humidity to less than 10%. OWD 0
ETHYLENE: Fireplaces A source of ethylene which affect plants grown in the home. A77-702 0
ETHYLENE: Flower Damage In a 1,000 cu.ft. closed greenhouse a 100-gram apple producing 10 grs. ethylene (C2H4) per ton per day would produce in one day .03 parts per million, at which damage to flowers would occur; a damaged apple, or partially eaten one, would cause much more damage. OR74-299 0
ETHYLENE: From Natural Gas Leak It took four or five days for the effect to show as bud drop and flower loss on phalaenopsis, OD69-272 0
ETHYLENE: Harmful Effects They are well-established; only at extremely high concentrations of duration do plants themselves adversely react by producing yellow leaves; do not transport plants to shows in a car trunk. A81-791 0
ETHYLENE: In Citrus Fruits They yield very little. A78-495 0
ETHYLENE: In Nature A ripening gaseous hormone in plants; an air pollutant to orchids; occurs in orchids; within hours of pollination orchid flowers produce it and flowers change; shipping containers permit it to accumulate. OD71-198 0
ETHYLENE: In Normal Greenhouse It can come from a leak in the propane gas line, or from traffic on a near-by road on a foggy night. A79-272 ; cars with catylic converters produce less. A80-356 0
ETHYLENE: Plants Not Susceptible to It Paphiopedilums are very resistant; they can be grown well under lights; they can replace cattleyas and phalaenopsis. A68-331 0
ETHYLENE: Preventive of Bud Drop Spraying dendrobiums and phalaenopsis in bud with silver nitrate 100 parts to 1 million of water will prevent bud drop, especially in the fall. ODA76(4)-32 0
ETHYLENE: Scrubbers Greenhouse air can be circulated through commercial machines to remove most of it if the house is closed tightly enough. AH86-107 0
ETHYLENE: Smoking Tobacco as a Source There is considerable ethylene in a room where several people are smoking. A69-614 0
ETHYLENE: Testing for Use small tomato plants which show a strong reaction to ethylene; the leaves bend downward from the stem, stiff but not wilted. A77-449 0
ETHYLENE: To Check for Presence in Greenhouse A laboratory test requiring a flame gas chromotography costs several thousand dollars; use young tomato plants, the response is unmistakable; the leaves grow down stiffly. A71-1102; A74-433 0
ETHYLENE: To Measure Content in Greenhouse on a Scientific Basis Use of the gas chromotograph outlined; refer to A69-415 0

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