GB/T 18247.2-2024Product grade for major ornamental plants - Part 2: Flowering potted plants (English PDF)

1 Scope

1 The document lays down the technical requirements for the quality and grading of flowering potted plant products and the inspection rules, and describes the corresponding test methods.

1 It applies to the evaluation of whole batches of flowering potted plants at the point of sale, raised in the open or under protection under regulated production management. Plant species not listed are graded by reference to the grading of similar plants in the document.

3 Terms and definitions

3.1 A flowering potted plant is a plant grown in a pot, trough or other container mainly for the sake of its flowers.

3.2 The morphological character of a cultivar comprises the external shape, colour and texture of the stem, leaves, flowers, fruit and other parts that the cultivar possesses.

3.3 Crown diameter is the mean of the projected diameter of the crown of the plant.

3.4 Plant height is the vertical distance from the rim of the container, taken as the datum line, to the highest point of the clump.

3.5 A pedicel is the stalk of a flower, a branch of the stem with the same structure as the stem but without nodes or leaf blades.

3.6 A scape is a flowering stem, without leaves or nodes, arising from the base of the plant, or a leafless common peduncle. A note gives its alternative names.

3.7 The perianth is the collective name for the calyx and the corolla, usually placed on the outer whorl of the flower.

3.8 Flower shape is the way the perianth segments are arranged on the receptacle. Examples given are the labiate flower shape of snapdragon and the funnel shape of morning glory.

3.9 Flower type is the posture and form of the flower. The examples given are the flat-petal, lotus-seat, tubular-globe and anemone types of chrysanthemum.

3.10 Flower diameter is the size of the flower, expressed as the transverse or vertical diameter of the corolla or of the whole flower.

3.11 Coverage percent is the percentage of the crown area covered by the flowers or inflorescences.

4 Quality grading

4.1 The basic quality requirements are that every kind of flowering potted plant product match the characteristics of its cultivar as a whole and be free of defects and of mechanical damage, that the leaf colour and flower colour be bright, that the root system be full and vigorous and the growing medium moist, and that the plant be free of pests and diseases.

4.2 Twenty-eight kinds of flowering potted plant are graded in Tables 1 to 28, one table for each kind, into grades I, II and III. The tables are set out with the rating items as rows and the three grades as columns, and each carries a final column of reference cultivars and a note referring to Annex A for the morphological characteristics of the main cultivars.

4.2 The kinds covered, in the order in which they appear, are Aglaia duperreana of three to four years, Anthurium cultivars, Antirrhinum majus, the Begonia Semperflorens-cultorum Group, Camellia japonica of three to four years, Catharanthus roseus, traditional Chrysanthemum by morifolium, small-flowered Chrysanthemum by morifolium, Clivia miniata, Cyclamen persicum, Cymbidium hybrids, Chinese Cymbidium species, Euphorbia pulcherrima of two years, Hydrangea macrophylla, Impatiens hawkeri, Jasminum sambac of three to four years, Kalanchoe blossfeldiana, Pelargonium species, Pericallis hybrida, Petunia hybrida cultivars, Phalaenopsis aphrodite, Primula acaulis, Rhododendron species of the Belgian azalea group, miniature Rosa cultivars, Salvia splendens, Sinningia speciosa, Tagetes erecta and Viola tricolor.

4.2 The rating items differ from kind to kind and are drawn from flower coverage, plant height in centimetres, crown diameter in centimetres, the ratio of crown diameter to height, pot size given as diameter by height in centimetres, flowering stage, number of flowers, number of inflorescences, inflorescence diameter, number of leaves, number of branches, number of spathes, number of scapes, scape length, pedicel length, flower diameter, the number of connected pseudobulbs, the proportion of the scape bearing flowers and buds, and the evenness of the plants in a batch. Several kinds are graded separately for tall, medium and dwarf forms, or for large-, medium- and small-flowered forms; small-flowered chrysanthemum is graded separately for three pot sizes; and the Chinese Cymbidium table is graded separately for Cymbidium goeringii, Cymbidium faberi and Cymbidium ensifolium.

5 Test methods

5.1 Colour, completeness of form and the state of the roots are checked visually.

5.2 Flower colour is checked for trueness against a standard colour chart.

5.3 Crown diameter, plant height, flower diameter, number of inflorescences and similar characteristics are measured according to the corresponding operating procedures in the test guidelines for distinctness, uniformity and stability of the same or a similar kind of ornamental plant, the guidelines cited being NY/T 2228-2012, NY/T 2230-2012, NY/T 2437-2013, NY/T 2508-2013, NY/T 2509-2013, NY/T 2513-2013, NY/T 2555-2014, NY/T 2576-2014, NY/T 2759-2015 and NY/T 3432-2019.

5.4 For pests and diseases, the plants are examined for symptoms of the dangerous pests and diseases regulated by the region or country of destination, and are then examined further for the pathogens, insects or eggs of those diseases; a culture examination may be made where needed.

6 Inspection rules

6.1 Products of the same origin, the same cultivar and the same lot form one inspection lot.

6.2 Samples are drawn at random from the lot submitted, the unit being the pot. Overall effect, the state of the flowers, the state of the stems and leaves, flower colour, crown diameter, plant height, flower diameter, pot diameter, pot height, pests and diseases and defects are checked according to 5.1 to 5.4, and the sample size and the acceptance decision follow general inspection level I of GB/T 2828.1-2012 under its single sampling plan for normal inspection, with an acceptance quality limit of 15, as set out in Table 29. Table 29 gives, for each lot size range, the sample size, the acceptance number Ac and the rejection number Re: below 25, a sample of 3 with Ac 1 and Re 2; 25 to 50, a sample of 5 with Ac 2 and Re 3; 51 to 100, a sample of 5 with Ac 2 and Re 3; 101 to 150, a sample of 8 with Ac 3 and Re 4; 151 to 280, a sample of 13 with Ac 5 and Re 6; 281 to 500, a sample of 20 with Ac 7 and Re 8; 501 to 1200, a sample of 32 with Ac 10 and Re 11; 1201 to 3200, a sample of 50 with Ac 14 and Re 15; 3201 to 10000, a sample of 80 with Ac 21 and Re 22; 10001 to 35000, a sample of 125 with Ac 21 and Re 22; and 35001 and above, a sample of 200 with Ac 21 and Re 22.

6.3 The inspection items are the qualitative indicators of the flowering potted plant product as specified, namely colour, completeness of form, state of the roots and pests and diseases, together with the dimensional indicators as specified, namely plant height, crown diameter, number of leaves, number of flowers, flower diameter and container size.

6.4 Grading is decided by taking the dimensional indicators together, provided that the sample meets the basic qualitative requirements. Where every indicator of the sample meets one and the same grade, the lot represented is judged to be of that grade; where any one indicator falls below that grade, the lot is placed in the grade of the lowest single indicator; and where any one indicator falls below the requirements of the lowest grade, the lot represented is judged to be an off-grade product.

A Annex A (informative) Morphological characteristics of the main cultivars of each category of flowering potted plant

A The annex describes, in twenty-eight entries matching the twenty-eight kinds graded in Clause 4, the habit of each plant and the form, arrangement, size and colour of its leaves, inflorescences and flowers, together with its flowering season. Among them, Aglaia duperreana is described as an evergreen shrub or small tree with much branching, odd-pinnate leaves of three to seven leaflets, axillary conical inflorescences 10 cm to 16 cm long bearing 100 to 300 small, round, yellow and strongly fragrant flowers, and a flowering season from July to October. Anthurium is described as a perennial herb with a short stem and alternate, leathery, glossy, broadly or roundly cordate leaves 12 cm to 30 cm long and 10 cm to 20 cm wide, and a spadix on a long peduncle with a deep red or orange red spathe. Cyclamen persicum is described as a bulbous plant with a flattened globose corm, cordate leaves clustered above the corm on fleshy reddish brown petioles, and solitary flowers on fleshy pedicels 15 cm to 20 cm long whose corolla is deeply five-lobed and joined into a tube at the base, with the segments turned upward like a rabbit ear. The entries for the two chrysanthemum categories separate them by a head diameter of more than 6 cm and less than 6 cm respectively, and the entry for Chinese Cymbidium treats Cymbidium goeringii, Cymbidium faberi and Cymbidium ensifolium in turn, giving for each the number and size of the leaves, the height of the scape, the number of flowers, the flower diameter and the flowering season.