Effects of weak light and 1-MCP treatments on storage qualities of Rosa chinensis

In simulated environment of storage and transport，with normal light and dark conditions as contrast， the effects of weak light and 1-MCP treatments on storage and transport qualities of Rosa chinensis were studied by determining the contents of chlorophyll，chlorophyll fluorescence parameters，water content，colour difference of the leaves，and the rate of yellow leaves. The results showed that weak light by 310 lx LED and 1.0μL/L 1-MCP treatment effectively maintained the leaf color of the roses. In dark conditions，light energy conversion rate of the leaves was significantly lower than that of the light environment. Compared with the 1-MCP treatment，the decrease of weak light leaves water content was smaller；Colour parameters value L on the 8th day increased the most significantly in the weak light treatment. Value a in the weak light treatment was higher than that of 1-MCP and dark treatment，and value b of weak light treatment was lower than 1-MCP and dark treatment. Generally，the LED weak light treatment had a better effect of maintain the storage and transport quality of the pot roses than that of 1-MCP treatment. As a simple and practical method of physical preservation，LED had a potential application in pot flower quality control.