{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.024893746205221615, 'fraction_numerical': 0.020036429872495445, 'mean_word_length': 4.843971631205674, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 0, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 0, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
Post Harvest Handling Methods for Enhanced Competitiveness of Fresh Cut Peonies Part 1. Vase Life Studies

Joint Summary. The University of Alaska Fairbanks in cooperation with Alaska peony growers conducted a series of experiments to establish standards for best quality fresh cut flowers to meet or exceed rigorous international industry requirements. Preliminary research at UAF found that chilling at 34 o F for 1 week, doubled the vase life of peonies, and data from 2013 season corroborates those findings. However, vase life for cut flowers in 2014 decreased significantly and did not improve with chilling. Vase life for ‘Sarah Bernhardt’ and ‘Duchess de Nemours’ peonies averaged 6.1 days and 5.9 days, respectively for the entire treatment period and did not differ from the un-chilled control. Because of the unexpected results from 2014, this research did not clearly identify minimum chilling requirements for Alaska peonies. In contrast, cut stems in 2013 showed a linear increase in vase life with chilling (8.2 to 14.2 days for ‘Sarah Bernhardt’ and 6.9 to 13 days for ‘Duchess de Nemours’. Vase life and bud diameter did not differ among early- mid- and late-season cutting dates for both cultivars. Cut stems from two commercial farms showed the same short vase life, and there was no statistical difference in vase life among farms. These studies do not corroborate the statement that vase life of Alaska peonies is double the national standard. Environmental factors during spring growth or post harvest handling differences play a more significant role in defining vase life than simply hours of chilling (deliverables b,c,e).