Seedlings of tomato fruit ripening mutants were screened for their ability to respond to ethylene. Ethylene induced the triple response in etiolated hypocotyls of all tomato ripening mutants tested except for one, Never ripe (Nr). Our results indicated that the lack of ripening in this mutant is caused by ethylene insensitivity. Segregation analysis indicated that Nr-associated ethylene insensi...

Flowers are prized as objects of great beauty and diversity, and are commercially valuable (~US$4.5 billion in international trade yearly) and highly perishable. Biologically, flower petals have an important role in the lifecycle of plants, as they protect immature reproductive structures, then provide the attraction and accessibility needed for pollination to occur. Flower petal cell wall cons...

Floral organs display tremendous variation in their exterior that is essential for organogenesis and the interaction with the environment. This diversity in surface characteristics is largely dependent on the composition and structure of their coating cuticular layer. To date, mechanisms of flower organ initiation and identity have been studied extensively, while little is known regarding the r...

Postharvest flower abscission is an ethylene-mediated process that can reduce the marketability of cut Chamelaucium Desf. (Myrtaceae) flowers. The sensitivity of 51 Chamelaucium cut flower genotypes to ethylene was evaluated. Sensitivity varied among genotypes both between and within different species and crosses. C. uncinatum × C. micranthum cv. ‘Sweet Georgia’ and C. uncinatum cvv. ‘Early Nir...

Soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr.) ovary growth was measured from anthesis to 6 days after anthesis (DAA) to establish a timetable of biochemical events that might be useful in identifying processes that initiate abscission. Two procedures were developed to provide samples with either high or low percent pod set for ;IX93-100,' a semideterminate line having long racemes. Characteristics measured ...