Gandadharappa, P MPatil, Kshama V2019-07-112019-07-112003No. of references 72http://krishikosh.egranth.ac.in/handle/1/5810113965"Experiments were carried out at Kittur Rani Channamma College of Horticulture Arabhavi on drying of cut carnation flowers for obtaining best quality dry carnation flowers .Data on shade drying of flowers harvested at different stages viz., paintbrush, cross bud and open embedded in two different desiccants (sand, silicagel) revealed that desiccating the open flowers in silicagel was superior with respect to colour euid texture. While drying cross bud flowers was best with respect to shape and appearance. Less number of days (6.13) were required to dry open flowers than paintbrush stage flowers (8.97days). Silicagel desiccated the flowers faster (5.4 days) than sand (10.06 days). Experiment on glycerol pretreatment showed improvement in suppleness of dried carnation flowers. The flowers treated with 1:1 glycerol to water for 12 hours maintained best texture, colour, shape and appearance and was on par with the flowers treated with 1:5 glycerol to water for 24 hours In the hot air oven, cross-bud stage flowers could be dried well at 40°C for 89.25 hours with sand desiccant. While in the microwave, drying at medium low level for 2.5 minutes and then at low level for 3.5 minutes produced the best quality dried flowers when silicagel was used as desiccant. Data on comparison of different drying methods viz., shade, sun, oven and microwave along with the two desiccants (sand and silicagel) revealed that drying cross bud flowers in shade for 164.67 hours and in hot air oven at 40°C for 68 hours by embedding in silicagel can produce best quality dried carnation flowers with respect to colour, shape, appearance and texture. Microwave drying of flowers in either of the desiccants performed poorly inspite of retaining the highest anthocyanin content (40.60%)."ennullThesis