There is no doubt that the accumulated carbohydrate reserve participates in shoot elongation. Since
hexoses, particularly glucose, are known to contribute to cell division and elongation [36,37], it has
been suggested that the slow growth of shoots in plants deprived of low temperature is due to an
insufficient supply of sugars. Sucrose-cleaving enzymes (invertases and sucrose-synthase) are
activated when there is a demand for metabolic carbohydrate and energy [38,39]. Apparently, without
low temperature treatment, there is no induction of carbohydrate demand in shoots and no activation of
invertases and sucrose-synthase [5,35]. At the same time, sucrose-cleaving enzymes play an important
role in the control of plant development [40], and the low activities of these enzymes in the stalks of
bulbs stored at higher temperature [34] may also prevent the initiation of stalk development and the
subsequent storage of carbohydrates.