Abstract

Chemical sprays were used as alternatives to cutting for the post-harvest defoliation of strawberry plants. Rapid desiccation of the foliage was obtained with dinoseb, sodium monochloroacetate, magnesium chlorate and sulphuric acid but the use of these chemicals normally resulted in lower yields than those obtained by mechanical defoliation. The reductions in yield appeared to be due to the less vigorous growth of the plants rather than to a lower level of inflorescence initiation.