INTRODUCTION:
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Gerbera is a herbaceous perennial plant. Gerbera is amongst the ten most important commercially grown flower crops in the world. The most commonly grown species is Gerbera jamesonii hybrid. The common names include Gerbera Daisy, Transvaal Daisy, African Daisy and Barberdos Daisy. It is mostly grown in temperate regions and is also cultivated in region having Mediterranean or sub-tropical climate.
It grows well under 50 percent shade net. Gerberas include about 40 species of perennial flowering plants with more than 300 different varieties of varied colours. The different types of gerbera flower forms include singles, doubles, crested doubles, full-crested doubles, and quilled types.
There are major two groups:
(1) Large (standard) group: Large grouped flowers have a floral diameter of more than 3 inches (>10cm).
(2) Mini group: a flower with a diameter of less than 3 inches at its widest point is categorized as a mini group (>10cm).

SOIL AND CLIMATE:
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Well-drained sandy loam, rich in organic matter and having slightly acidic to neutral pH (6.5-7.0) is ideal for cultivation of gerbera. However, the pH of the soil should be maintained between 5.5-6.6 to get maximum efficiency in absorption of nutrients. The salinity level of the soil should not be more than 1mS/cm. The soil should be highly porous and well drained to have better growth and penetration of the roots.Cocopeat can be mixed to improve media texture and drainage as per the need. Coarse sand and manure also need to be added to the topsoil layer (15 to20 cm) of the heavy clay soil to make it suitable for cultivation.

Temperature:
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Most of the cultivars grow best at an average temperature range of 18-210C. The ideal temperature for initiation of flowering is 230C and that of leaf unfolding is 25-27°C. However, the plants would flower within a temperature range of 13 to 32°C.

Humidity:
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The optimum humidity inside the greenhouse must be around 70-75%. Good internal air circulation in the greenhouse at night and ventilation during the day are essential.
Lighting and shading system:
Light shade (30-40%) can be used to reduce excessive greenhouse temperature during the summers. Plants receiving too much light will have compact, slightly yellow foliage with short flower stems often hidden in the foliage while those receiving less light have pale green, stretched foliage and long, weak flowering stems.

VARIETIES:
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There are varieties which are known as ‘Black hearts’ or ‘Green hearts’ on the basis of color of the disc. There are double and bicolor varieties also.Some commercial varieties are given below”
Bicolour : Popov, Sunway
Cream :Dalma, Dana Ellen, Mammut
Yellow : Cabana, Deliana, Essandre, Heatwave, Martinique, Piton, Skyline
Lilac :Banesa, Malibu
Orange : Amaretto, Golden Serena, Samson
Red : Debora, Eco, Opium, Red Bull, Savannah, Yarana, Zingaro, Stanza, Fana
Pink : Esmara, Finola, Marmara, Pink Elegance, Primrose, Woman
White : Winter Queen

PLANTING DETAILS:
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Vegetative propagation includes stem cutting and separation of suckers or from offsets. The buds in the axils of the leaves are detached and rooted in the rooting medium. They are ready for transplanting in 2 or 3 months. Approximately 40-50 plants can be produced in 2-3 months from a single mother plant. Young stem cuttings easily and quickly produce roots and shoots under intermittent mist. Tissue culture method of propagation is the best method for commercial use as this helps in uniform and healthy growth but also diseases-free, vigorous plants that produce long lasting and high quality flowers.

PLANTING

Soil preparation

Organic manure viz. FYM manure @ 7.5kg/ m2 is to be applied before planting to improve soil texture and provide nutrition gradually to the plants. The soil has to be sterilized before plantation to avoid incidence of diseases caused by soil borne pathogens viz. Phytophthora, Fusarium, Pythium etc.

Bed preparation

Gerberas are usually grown on raised beds. The height, width and the pathway of the bed should be 45 cm (1.5ft), 60 cm (2 ft), and 30-50 cm (1 ft) respectively.The bed mixture includes 450 kg of rice husk, 4.5 trolleys of FYM (200 cu ft capacity of each trolley) and 9 trolleys of soil (200 cu ft capacity of each trolley), which is mixed thoroughly for preparing an area of 100 sq m. A growing media mix consisting of FYM, sand and coconut coir in 2:1:1 proportion can be used as an alternative. Organic manure and upper layer of the soil should be mixed thoroughly as this helps in improving soil texture and nutrient status. Gravel or sand may be added at the bottom of the bed for better drainage. The soil should not become compact after irrigation. Single super phosphate (0:16:0) @ 25 kg per 100 sqm and magnesium sulphate 2.5 kg /100 m2 has to be added during bed preparation.FYM @7.5kg/m2 should be applied.



Planting time
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Planting can be done throughout the year but preferably during September-October.
Spacing
Plant spacing for Gerbera is 30 cm within rows and 37.5 cm between the rows. While planting, the crown of the plants should be 1-2 cm above soil level.

NUTRITION MANAGEMENT:
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After plantation, the plants are to be irrigated with rose can for the first one to three weeks. After three weeks, fertilizer in the form of NPK (20:20:20) should be applied (EC 1.5 mS/cm) @ 1.5g/liter along with irrigation water at every alternate day for the first three months during the vegetative phase to have better foliage. After a period of four to eight weeks after planting, calcium (20-40 ppm) and magnesium (10 ppm) should also be applied. Flowering commences 10-12 weeks or three months (approx.) after plantation. Once flowering commences, NPK in the ratio of 2:1:4 should be applied everyday [34 g N, 18 g P and 80g K per 100 sqmarea] for better flowering quality. Micronutrients preferably from a chelated source should be applied (@ 9 g/100 sqm) at weekly or fortnightly intervals as per the deficiency symptoms.

IRRIGATION MANAGEMENT:
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The plants are irrigated immediately after plantation with overhead micro-sprinklers for four weeks to enable uniform root development. Drip irrigation system can be followed after this period mainly to provide sufficient irrigation and fertilizers in the second year for the extra foliage. Gerbera needs thorough irrigation, instead of light sprinkling at frequent intervals. However, water-logging is harmful. The average requirements are about 500-700 ml/day/plant (4.5-6 l/m2 area) depending on the season and stage of the crop. In hot summer, the water requirement is upto 7 liters per sq m per day.

PEST AND DISEASE:
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Diseases
Fungal diseases:- Crown and root rot, Fusarium stem disease, Botrytis,Powdery Mildew, etc. Proper disease management programme should be followed. Nematode infestation (root knot nematode) is also observed if proper care in soil sterilization is not taken. Neem based products like Nemacur, Nemate are effective against nematodes. Soil-sterilization process should be proper to avoid nematode infestation
Pests
Leaf miner, Aphids, mites, Thrips, White fly, etc. are found heavily infesting gerbera plants resulting in great damage if timely control measure is not taken. These sucking pests showing symptoms of crinkling, curling and distorted leaves and buds can be controlled using systemic insecticides like Dimethoate @2 ml/l water or Imidachlorpid @3-5 ml/10 l water. Thiamethoxim @3-4 ml/l water is highly effective against mites.If infestation of leaf eating caterpillars is found it can be controlled using contact insecticides like Monocrotophos 2ml/l water or Indoxocarb @3-4 ml/15 l water or Dicofol @ 2 ml/l water.

Physiological Disorders:
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1. Pre-harvest stem break
Sudden wilting during hot summer or when day temperature increases rapidly during sunny weather, followed by irrigation results into stem break. After watering or the returning of cooler growing conditions, the water of the stem is rapidly replenished and the stem become turgid again. During the rehydration process, extreme tension is imposed on cells in the stem where rapid elongation is occurring which causes stem break.
Keeping soil moist during sunny day and reducing air temperature can prevent this situation.
If wilting still occurs, the plants should be re-watered early morning or evening and not during the hottest period of the day.
2. Premature flower wilt
Premature flower wilt is observed when stems are still attached to the plant and the symptoms often develops just as petals are in full expansion. This is observed mostly after a period of cloudy days with low light intensities followed by a clear sunny day.Lack of stored carbohydrates may aggrevate the problem.
During such situations, screening the crop and allowing the use of radiation gradually should be prefered.
3. Bent neck
Insufficient flower stem hardening or maturation of the stem tissue below the harvested flower can result in stem collapse, which is known as ‘bent neck’. Poor winter growing conditions contributed to the problem and the flower head may break easily. Avoid harvesting of flower stems when they are immature in winter months.
Micronutrient Disorders
1. Iron deficiency
Young emerging leaves show intervals chlorosis, leaf and flower size becomes small as mild symptoms. With advancing severity young emerging leaves become yellowish-whitish, leaf margin becomes necrotic and plant dies. To avoid this condition maintain moderately acidic pH (5.5 to 6 pH) and incorporate decomposed manure to bring down the pH. Use foliar spray of 0.5% FeSO4 with 0.5% urea with suitable surfactant immediately after interveinalchlorosis is noticed. Timely control of root pathogens like fungus and nematodes should also be done.
2. Manganese deficiency:
The leaves turn yellowish, starting with the older ones while the veins, including a small margin along them, remain green. This Mn deficiency can be corrected by treating the crop with chelates of manganese combination.

YIELD AND POST HARVEST MANAGEMENT:
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YIELD
The duration of the crop is for 24-30 months, approximately. Average yield of standard gerbera is 42-45 flowers per plant per year (i.e.250-270 flowers approx. per sqm/year when the plant density is 6 plants/sqm.
HARVESTING
Gerbera flowers are harvested when outer 2-3 rows of disc florets are opened perpendicular to the stalk. Flowers should be plucked with gentle rotation of the base of stems instead of cutting the stem. Harvesting in morning hours is preferred.
POST HARVEST MANAGEMENT
Grading
Gerbera flowers are immediately held in water after harvesting and then placed in cool chamber (5-10 C) for few hours before packaging. Grading is done before packaging with proper care. Grading is done on the basis of the quality of flowers, length and firmness of the stem and any possible foliage and flower bud abnormalities.Grading on the basis of stem length is done from 45-55 cm stem length. Quality standards required in the international market include the following:
• Bunch must be fresh and in good form and composition and appealing flower and leaf colour.
• Flowers should be uniform in thickness, sturdiness and volume.
• Bunch should not have any limp flower.
• Flowers must be free from growth defects including tears during growth and irregularly shaped hearts and flowers (disc and ray florets).
• They should be free of heels.
• Grading and packing criteria are to be followed properly
Several preservatives have been reported to be effective in prolonging vase life. A solution of 8 Hydroxyquinolinesulphate (HQS) 200 mg/1 and 5 per cent sucrose prolongs vase life by 4-5 days. Gerbera flower heads are enclosed in small polythene bags for protection against mechanical injury, bunched as 10 flowers in each bunch and packed in C.F.B. box (ventilated) of size (98x30x12 cm) for transportation. One box can accommodate 50 bunches i.e 500 flowers/box.