Eeshwar Sahu, Pradeep kumar sahu , Sarita, and Hemant kumar 
Department of Fruit Science College of Agriculture Gwalior - 474002(M.P.) India Author for corresponding: eshu88899@gmail.com

GERBERA 
Gerbera has occupied a proud position among the top 10 cut flowers of the trade. It is commonly known as Transvaal daisy, Barberton daisy or African daisy which produce very attractive flowers. 

Gerbera cultivation 

Name: Gerbera jamesonii 

Family: Compositae 

2n: 50 

Native: South Africa and Asiatic region 

Varieties 
Salvadore, Sangria, Silvester, Primrose, Pradisco, Goliath, Danaellen, Dune, Sunway 

Bucket with flower stalk 
Soil: 
A well drained, rich, light, neutral or alkaline soil is most suitable for gerbera production. The ideal pH is 6.0-7.0. The soil should be highly porous and well drained to have better root growth and better penetration of roots. The roots of gerbera go as deep as 50-70 cm. 

Land preparation:
The land should be repeatedly ploughed for making it good and sufficient amount of organic matter in to the soil. The beds should be prepared 30-40 cm deep. The beds are generally of about 25-30 cm in height, 1-1.5 m width 

Planting 
  • Planting of gerbera can be done throughout the year. 
  • Sep to Oct. 
  • February-March. 
  • Spacing – 30X30 cm. 
  • A single bed should not have more than 3-4 rows of plants to avoid uneven exposition of inner plants to light. 
  • On average, a plant population of 9 plants/m2 is maintained in the greenhouse. 

Climate: 
Gerbera like sunny situation in mild weather for better plant growth and flowering but during summer months they should be lightly shaded if grown under open condition. 12-25 0C and 80% RH. 

Temperature 
  • Gerbera prefers a moderate temperature of not more than 27 C during day and not less than 18 C during night time.
  • For quick rooting and initial growth 20 25 C should be maintained just after planting. 
  • For a period of one month after planting, night temperature should be maintained at 12-15 C.
  • Temperature below 10 C is not suitable for gerbera plants. 
  • During winter and autumn months, the day and night temperature maintained at 14-17 C and 11-13 C respectively. 

Propagation: 
Gerbera can be propagated by both sexual and asexual methods. 
  • Seed
  • Division 
  • Cuttings 
  • Micropropagation 

Mineral Nutrition: 
  • Quantity of manures and fertilizers should be adjusted on the basis of soil test and requirement of the crop. 
  • Application of a combination of NPK 2:1:3@90 mg N, 130 mg P2O5 and 400 mg K2o /lit proves ideal for gerbera. Frequent applications of nutrients at regular intervals are useful for optimum growth and development of gerbera. 

Irrigation: 
The quantity of irrigation water requirement depends upon texture of the soil, intensity of light, stage of growth of the plants etc. frequent moderate irrigations are preferred to avoid rotting and there by plants will not dry up to much. The soil should be moderately most to a depth of 10 cm. 

Plant Growth Regulators 
  • GA3- 50 ppm promoted earlier flowering,100 ppm number of flowers increased 
  • Chlormequat- 500 ppm promoted earlier flowering

Harvesting: 
  • The flowers are produced 50-70 days after planting, take 3 months when plants raised through seed.
  • Flowers are harvested when the outer two whorls disc florets are perpendicular to the stem and flower shows pollen grains. 
  • Flowers are harvested during the cool hours of the day by pulling or pushing near the base of flower stem by holding clump with a foot. 

Yield: 
Generally, about 150-250 flowers are obtained from one square meter per year. An orange flower variety (Maron Clementine) more than 400 flowers/m2/year. 

Post harvest handling: 
The cut flower kept in clean water containing preservatives solution and bactericides without after delaying. 

Preservatives like Chrysal, Florissant, HQC, etc are generally used. 

Grading, Packing and Transport
  • The stem of gerbera are highly prone to bending. The stems should not be less then 40 cm and should be firm and straight. The flowers should be uniform in size which should not be less then 7 cm. In Europe, the flowers of gerbera are packed in flat boxes containing paper inserts with a hole for individual stems. The sport is necessary to prevent the stems from moving.
  • For domestic markets, before packing, the individual flowers can be inserted in polyethylene sleeves, to protect them from bruising. 
  • The flowers are either transported in refrigerated vans at 4-5 C or pre cooled flowers are transported by air.

Diseases 

Fungal 
  • Footrot and root rot (Rhizoctonia solani, Phytophthora and Pythium), Control by captan at 0.20%.
  • Sclerotium rot (Sclerotium rolfsii) affecting the entire above-ground parts of the plants. High during Agust-September, Control by Dithen M-45.                                                                           
  • Anthracnose (Colletotrichum gloeoporoides), Control by bavistin (0.10%).
  •  Blossom blight (Botrytis cinerea),0.1% benlate or 0.2% thiram help preventing the disease. 

Bacterial

Bacterial Blight 
Control: planting material should be treated with streptomycin (0.01%) 

Viral 
Tobacco rattle virus 
Control- Soil sterilization to control the nematodes vectors 

Insect-Pests 

White fly: Spraying of any systemic insecticide is helpful 

Aphids: Control by spraying dimethoate (0.3 %) or neem oil (1%) 

Red spider mites: Control by spraying Kelthane 1 ml/lit of water 

Leaf miner: Control by spraying dimethoate (0.3 %) 

Physiological Disorders 
  • Pre harvest Stem Break.
  • Pre harvest stem break occurs when plants are allowed to wilt during the day or when day temperatures increase rapidly during bright sunny weather. 
  • Premature flower wilt.