Use of tracers to monitor application of treatment products to cut flowers

A method to determine whether the desired amount of treatment product is present in water that cut flowers are placed in;

• comprising the steps of:
• a) adding a known amount of an inert fluorescent tracer to a known amount of a treatment product, with said treatment product being suitable for application to water that cut flowers are placed in;
• b) applying said treatment product to water that cut flowers are placed in;
• c) using a fluorometer to measure the fluorescent signal of said inert fluorescent tracer in said water that cut flowers are placed in;
• d) using the fluorescent signal of said inert fluorescent tracer to determine the amount of inert fluorescent tracer present in said water that cut flowers are placed in;
• e) correlating the amount of inert fluorescent tracer present in said water that cut flowers are placed in with the amount of treatment product present in said water that cut flowers are placed in;
• f) comparing the amount of treatment product present in said water that cut flowers are placed in with the desired amount of treatment product that is supposed to be present in said water that cut flowers are placed in;
• and optionally
• g) adjusting the amount of treatment product applied to said water that cut flowers are placed in, based on the measured fluorescent signal of said inert fluorescent tracer.