April 2004 issue of the Cornell Flower Bulb Research Program Research Newsletter:
Recently the ethylene inhibitor FreshStart, also known as Ethylbloc, EB-01, SmartFresh and 1-MCP has been approved for the use in tulip bulbs. At Applied Plant Research (PPO) the efficacy of the gas has been studied during the past 5 years. In the first experiment, in small glass jars, it was possible to prevent gummosis in tulip bulbs by pretreating the bulbs with FreshStart for 24 h and subsequently exposing the bulbs to high concentrations of ethylene. From that moment on it was clear that FreshStart is an extremely powerful ethylene inhibitor for tulips. In the following experiments the optimal concentration, exposure time and duration of the protection from ethylene were determined.