Whereas t max is 13.5 h for the reference sample without additive and t m shows a value of 7.5 h, the intersection method yields a value of t is = 3.7 h (see Table ). The intersection is expected to be found earlier than the maximum slope. Furthermore, the intersection will not only depend on t m but also on the m and the value of the minimum heat flow during the dormant period. However, the differences between the characteristic time for the reference and the respective sample remain approximately constant, independent of the chosen method. We find ∆t max = t max (sucr.) -t max (ref.) = 4.8 h for a dosage of 1 µmol g -1 sucrose, which is similar to ∆t m = 5.4 h and ∆t is = 5.3 h for the same dosage.