CIELab measurement, a precise communication in flower colour: An example with carnation(Dianthus caryophyllus)cultivars

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Abstract
A review of the principles of colour measurement—with particular requirements for its application to flower material—and of the different equipment available is provided to propose the best type of instrument for this purpose, namely spectrocolorimeters. Then, using a measurement procedure carefully standardized for each material, highly precise and reproducible colorimetric values are obtained for use by breeders (for selection process) and protection authorities (in the protection scheme for breeders’ rights). Colour measurement has been used on a collection of 32 carnation cultivars and the RHS Colour Chart (yellow and cyanic colours groups), using the CIE [1976] L*a*b* system. In both cases, from spectral readings, CIELab values (L*C*h notation) enable an objective and independent determination of the three visual attributes of colour: hue (h), saturation (Chroma, C*) and Lightness (L*). For carnation cultivars, their colour (especially in the range of pink tones in which most general colour names are inappropriate) are discussed according to the respective values and range of these three parameters. The arrangement of colour patches and sheets in the RHS Chart is also discussed using a similar approach, along with a colorimetric comparison of cultivars colours and their corresponding reference code. A model colorimetric report and a correlative set of standard conditions are also proposed for a more definitive description of flower colour; they include all the spectral and colorimetric values of the sample examined, along with those of the corresponding RHS reference code which can be impartially and automatically retrieved using colorimetric database management systems, handling colour differences (CMC differences especially). Finally, as colour expression in the CIELab system is gaining worldwide acceptance, it would provide an easy, efficient and reliable definition of flower colour which can be precisely communicated.

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