Abstract:
Field survivals of strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) runner plants
dug from December to April in both 1979 and 1980 were above 9C% when
planted about May 1. When plants from the same digging dates were
planted in early June, survival of March-dug 'Olympus' declined to
88% and survival of late-April-dug 'Totem' declined to 70% and 44% for
1979 and 1980 respectively.
Field vigor mostly parallelled survival in 'Totem'. 'Olympus'
vigor was 25% greater for April- versus January-dug stock when planted
May 1, 1979, and evaluated after fifteen weeks. 1980 fruit yield per
plant was also 25% greater in April- versus January-dug 'Olympus'
planted May 1, 1979. However, January-dug 'Totem' outyielded late-dug
plants by up to 25% for both early and late planting dates.
Fungicide treatments, storage temperature, and nursery source
did not significantly affect survival or vigor of March-dug 'Olympus'
plants.
Greenhouse root growth of January-dug plants was up to ten times
greater than that of April-dug plants of both cultivars in 1979 and
1980. The incidence of apical damage, a possible result of cold-storage
injury, increased from near zero for January- and February-dug
plants to 50-90% for March- and April-dug plants. Storage temperatures
of -3° to 0°C had little effect on plant quality, except for up to a
three-fold increase in the incidence of apical rot for -3°C over 0°C
storage.
Carbohydrate concentrations showed a declining trend with
later digging dates in both cultivars. In 'Totem', free sugars in
roots declined by 60% from January to April in both years. Starch
levels in 'Olympus' declined about 65% from a January high to a March
low in 1980. Changes in carbohydrate status were associated with
greenhouse root growth as well as survival and vigor in both the
field and greenhouse. Plant viability and carbohydrate levels seemed
related to weather preceding each digging date and developmental
stage.
