Short communication

J. Hortl. Sci.
Vol. 7(2):209-210, 2012

Bougainvillea is one of the most important semi-
scandent, fast growing climbers imparting beauty to gardens
in North India with its brightly coloured bracts. During Feb-
June and again, in Sept-Dec. Colour of the bract ranges
from deep magenta to white, including purple, mauve,
orange, red, scarlet, crimson, pink and yellow. It can be
planted as a hedge, as standard or semi-standard shrub or
bush, in pots, as bonsai, or, can be even trained against light-
coloured walls. It is most suited for planting in boulevards,
city squares and expressways. It is propagated by cuttings
and layering. Plant growth regulators have been reported
to stimulate root formation in the propagation material (Kale
and Bhujbal, 1972; and Nath, 1999). The present
investigation was carried out to study the effect of different
concentrations of IBA on rooting potential of stem cuttings
of four different varieties of bougainvillea, viz., Louise
Wathen, Thimma, Mrs. Butt and Shubhra, and to arrive at
the best treatment for a given variety.

The investigation was carried out at Main
Experimental Station, Department of Horticulture, Narendra
Deva University of Agriculture & Technology, Kumarganj,
Faizabad, during 2008-09. Hardwood cuttings 20-23cm long
and 7-10mm thick of the four varieties listed above were
harvested from fully mature woody shoots of previous year’s
growth. Cuttings were then treated with three

Effect of indole butyric acid (IBA) concentration on sprouting, rooting and callusing
potential in bougainvillea stem cuttings

Neerja Singh
College of Horticulture & Forestry

Narendra Deva University of Agriculture and Technology
Kumarganj, Faizabad-224229, India
E-mail: neerja.nduat@rediffmail.com

ABSTRACT

A study was conducted in 2008-09 to investigate the influence of Indole Butyric Acid (IBA) at 0, 1000, 1500 and
2000ppm concentrations on rooting potential in hardwood cuttings of four varieties of bougainvillea, i.e., Louise
Wathen, Thimma, Mrs. Butt and Shubhra. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Block Design with sixteen
treatments and four replications.  Results indicated that both IBA concentration and variety had significant effect on
sprouting, rooting, callusing and establishment of cuttings. Louise Wathen cuttings treated with 1000ppm IBA were
superior in response with 85.39% sprouting, 75.46% rooting and 80.78% callusing. Establishment (100%) was
also best in this treatment.

Key words: Bougainvillea spp., indole butyric acid, bracts, callusing

concentrations of IBA (1000, 1500 and 2000 ppm) for 30
minutes and planted in nursery beds, along with the control,
under open-condition. Planting distance was 20cm between
rows and 10cm within the row. Sixteen treatments with four
replications were included in Randomized Block Design, in
the first week of March. Observations on sprouting
percentage were made when most number of cuttings
sprouted. Rooting and callusing percentage was calculated
upon digging out the cuttings in July, i.e., 19 weeks after
planting. Rooted cuttings were planted back into nursery
beds for three months for studying their rate of establishment.

Data in Table 1 reveal that percentage sprouting,
rooting, callusing and establishment increased significantly
on application of indole butyric acid, in comparison to the
control. It was also noted that increasing the concentration
of IBA from 1000 to 2000ppm resulted in reduced in
response. Hardwood cuttings of Louise Wathen treated with
1000ppm IBA were found to be significantly superior to
rest of the treatments with respect to sprouting (85.39%),
rooting (75.46%), callusing (80.78%) and establishment
(190%). Lowest values for all types of response were
recorded in Shubhra cuttings under control. Beneficial effect
of IBA (1500ppm) on rooting has also been recorded by
Kale and Bhujbal (1972) in Cuttings of Bougainvillea var.
‘Mary Palmer’. Kanmadi et al (1997) reported highest



210

percentage of primary and secondary roots per cutting in
bougainvillea var. ‘Mahara’ at 1000ppm IBA. Singh and
Singh (2002) reported best rooting response at 2000ppm
IBA in the variety ‘Thimma’. Increasing the concentration
of IBA from 1000 to 2000 ppm resulted in decreased
sprouting, rooting, callusing, etc. In Louise Wathen, rooting
at 1000ppm was 75.46%, but was only 49.33% at 2000ppm.
Similarly, significant reduction in callusing (55.5%) and
establishment (97.5%) was observed at 2000ppm IBA in
this variety. Shepherd and Winston (2000) reported 125ppm

IBA to be the best concentration for improving rooting in
variety ‘Thimma’ when 0, 125, 250, 500 and 1000 ppm IBA
concentrations were used.

Increase in all three types of response varied
significantly among different varieties at similar
concentrations of IBA. Variety ‘Louise Wathen’ proved best
for all propagation parameters, followed by ‘Thimma’. Values
for sprouting, rooting, etc., were found lowest in the case of
‘Shubhra’ at the same concentration of IBA. Even at
1000ppm IBA, sprouting (58.45%), rooting (47.88%),
callusing (58.45%) and establishment (87.50%) were
significantly poor in ‘Shubhra’ compared to the other three
varieties.

REFERENCES

Kale, P.N. and Bhujbal, B.G. 1972. Use of growth regulators
in rooting of cuttings of bougainvillea var. Mary
Palmer. Punjab Hort. J., 15:71-73

Kanmadi, V.C., Patil, S., Ryagi, Y.H., Shirol, R.M. and
Vijaykumar. 1997. Effect of growth regulators on
rooting of cuttings in bougainvillea variety Mahara.
Adv. Agril. Res. India, 7:43-45

Nath, J.C. 1999.  Rooting of bougainvillea var. Dr Rao as
affected by IBA and type of cuttings. Haryana J.
Hortl. Sci., 28:74-75

Shepherd, H. and Winston, S.L. 2000. Effect of IBA on
rooting of stem cuttings of bougainvillea
(Bougainvillea sp.) cv. Thimma. Bioved., 4:37-40

Singh, A.K. and Singh, V.B. 2002. Influence of wood
maturity and auxin on regeneration of bougainvillea
cuttings. Prog. Hort., 34:196-199

Table 1. Effect of IBA on rooting of cuttings in four varieties of
bougainvillea

Treatment Sprouting Rooting Callusing Establishment
% % % %

V
1
C

0
53.78 22.27 32.31 92.50

V
1
C

1
85.39 75.46 80.78 100.0

V
1
C

2
69.53 56.95 65.84 100.0

V
1
C

3
63.81 49.33 55.50 97.50

V
2
C

0
45.00 26.19 37.66 95.50

V
2
C

1
74.14 63.81 69.53 97.50

V
2
C

2
61.77 50.83 56.95 95.00

V
2
C

3
56.95 43.56 52.34 90.00

V
3
C

0
34.56 16.58 31.29 82.50

V
3
C

1
60.27 49.38 58.61 92.50

V
3
C

2
53.78 42.12 53.78 90.00

V
3
C

03
49.39 37.73 45.00 87.50

V
4
C

0
32.90 10.65 22.50 80.00

V
4
C

1
58.45 47.68 58.45 87.50

V
4
C

2
50.83 40.67 49.39 85.00

V
4
C

3
45.06 33.05 39.17 82.50

CD(p=0.05) 4.684 4.850 5.232 5.525

V
1 
= Louise Wathen C

0 
= Control (No IBA)

V
2 
= Thimma C

1 
= 1000ppm IBA

V
3 

= Mrs. Butt C
2 
= 1500ppm IBA

V
4 
= Shubhra C

3 
= 2000ppm IBA

(MS Received 02 June 2011, Revised 21 August 2012)

Neerja Singh

J. Hortl. Sci.
Vol. 7(2):209-210, 2012