Re: [aroid-l] refrigerating tubers

I find the flowering stalk to be 'less resistant' to being held dormant
by cold on konjac and if it wants to go it goes. I would not risk
stopping it by going any colder than 44 or so. I once stored a big
konjac in a refrigerator at 38F dry and it received enough cold injury
to have the tuber rot. Remember that the flower stalk must preceed the
leaf and if you are to get the leaf out in time to renew the tuber
stalling the flowering until late spring would not result in good
vegetative growth unless you have a greenhouse or live down south.

_______________________________

Michael Marcotrigiano, Ph.D
Director of the Botanic Garden and Professor of Biological Sciences
Smith College
Lyman Conservatory, 15 College Lane
Northampton, MA 01063
email: mmarcotr@smith.edu
voice: 413-585-2741; fax: 413-585-2744
www.smith.edu/garden
www.science.smith.edu/~mmarcotr
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Art is the unceasing effort to compete with 
     the beauty of flowers and never succeeding."
          Marc Chagall
>>> llmen@wi.rr.com 12/01/03 12:43 PM >>>
>Last March, I came home from a trip to find that a konjac had sent 
>an inflorescence up in my basement, the spike had shot through the 
>space between the shelf system and was in the process of trying to 
>open up.
>Now the question is:  What would be the ideal temperature to keep 
>the tubers in hiberation but not induce any temprature-related 
>injury? I assume the Canna would do best around 45 degrees F (7 C). 
>Would that be OK for kojac?


Hi Les,
My konjac's do just fine in my basement with temps in the low 50's 
(F) and a friend of mine keeps his in a root cellar at even lower 
temps, probably closer to 45F.   As long as they are kept away from 
any dampness, they should be fine.  Don't know if this applies to any 
other species.

-- 
Don Martinson
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
l*@wi.rr.com
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