Abstract
Rose plants (Rosa hybrida ‘Sonia’=‘Sweet Promise’) were grown in heated (minimum night temperature 17°C), and unheated greenhouses with or without root heating to 21°C. These trials covered 6 growth cycles extending over two winter seasons. In the heated greenhouse, root heating did not increase yield, flower quality or plant development. In the unheated greenhouse, root-heated plants grew as well as those in the air-heated greenhouse as long as the air temperature did not fall below 6°C. When minimum night temperatures fell below 6°C, growth, yield and quality were reduced, irrespective of root temperature.
Daytime plant water relations were studied in plants growing at 6 different root temperatures in the unheated greenhouse. Leaf resistance to water diffusion was lowest at optimal root temperature. Total leaf water potential was not significantly affected by root temperature.
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Zeroni, M., Gale, J. The effect of root temperature on rose plants in relation to air temperature. Plant Soil 104, 93–98 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02370630
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02370630