Commercial Packaging and Storing of Bare-Root Rose Bushes

Excerpts from the report Summary: Storage of year-old bare-root rose plants has been limited by the development of decay and loss of moisture in the plants. A new method of packaging that almost eliminates drying out has been developed and tested during 4 storage seasons. This method utilizes a polyethylene-coated kraft paper liner fitted into a carton, crate, or box. The use of cartons with the special liners would cut package costs about one-third as compared with costs of the conventional wirebound crate with waxed-paper lining and sphagnum moss and excelsior packing. The new method requires less labor to prepare the carton and liner for use than the old method; it reduces the weight of the packages by 20 percent, lowering the costs of shipping to eastern markets. Several fungicides were also tested. Decay in storage was controlled most consistently in these tests by dipping the bushes before packing into a suspension of 2 pounds of captan 50 WP in 100 gallons of water. This treatment not only reduced losses due to decay in storage but lessened the amount of labor required to recondition the bushes before planting. Other fungicides tested were somewhat less effective, while still others were either ineffective or harmful to the bushes.