Effects of Age and Cold Storage of Transplants on the Growth and Quality of Broccoli Heads

In the two-factor field experiment conducted in 2002-2004 the effect of transplant age and the time of storage on the yield of broccoli cv. ‘Lord F₁’ was investigated. Transplants were stored in freon cold room without access to light at +2°C and a relative air humidity of 80-85%. Both investigated factors had no significant effect on crop acceleration. Plants obtained from 4-week old transplants gained marketable yield significantly higher than plants obtained from 10-week old transplants. Significantly higher yield was obtained from transplants stored in a cooling room as compared to non-stored transplants. No univocal effect of the transplant age on the percentage of hollow stems was demonstrated.