MFI FOUNDATION, Inc.

PLANT PROPAGATION

Plant Propagation

• The process or multiplying or increasing the number or plants of the same species and at the same time perpetuating their desirable characteristics.

Purpose To retain the desirable characteristic

of mother plants To rapidly increase the number of

plants. To shorten the bearing age of plants. To prevent the species from being

lost. To produce superior strains and

disease resistant plants

Methods of Propagation

• Sexual Propagation• Asexual Propagation

Sexual Propagation

The propagation or reproducing of plants from seeds.

Pollen is transferred from the anther to the stigma.

Fertilization occurs and seeds are produced

Advantages

• In some fruit plants like papaya, this is the most popular method of propagation.

• Seed propagated rootstocks are hardy and develop better root system.

Advantages

• Viruses don’t transmit through seeds, thus mostly the seedlings are free from virus diseases.

• Occurrence of polyembryony (more than one embryo in seed) in citrus and mango leads to the development of uniform seedlings as in asexual method.

Parts of a seed

Cotyledon

A cotyledon is part of the embryo within the seed of a plant. Often when the seed germinates or begins to grow, the cotyledon may become the first leaves of the seedling.

Seed Coat

The outer layer and the protective covering of a seed.

Radicle

Radicle is the first part of a seedling to emerge from the seed during the process of germination. The radicle is the embryonic root of the plant, and grows downward in the soil.

Epicotyl

The epicotyl is the embryonic shoot above the cotyledons. In most plants the epicotyl will eventually develop into the leaves of the plant.

Hypocotyl

The hypocotyl (short for "hypocotyledonous stem", meaning "below seed leaf") is the stem of a germinating seedling, found below the cotyledons (seed leaves) and above the radicle (root)

Planting of seeds

• Planting depth depends on the size of the seeds.

• The larger the seed, the deeper it is planted.

• Small seeds should be watered by bottom soaking.

Germination• Germination rate is the % that sprout.

– Example: 75 out of 100 = 75%• Rates affected by….

– Seed viability.– Temperature.– Moisture.– Type of plant.– Quality of seed.

Germination percentage

• -is an estimate of the viability of a population of seeds. The equation to calculate germination percentage is: GP = seeds germinated/total seeds x 100.

 

Example

56 is the number of seeds that is germinated100 is the total number of seeds that is sowned

Asexual Propagation

• In this method of propagation the plants are obtained from a vegetative portion of the mother plant instead of seeds.

Advantages

• In some fruit plants like banana, which do not bear seeds, this is the only method of propagation.

• The plants are generally true-to-type, uniform in growth, yielding capacity and fruit quality.

Advantages

• Have short juvenile phase, thus come into bearing earlier than seedling plants.

• Plants have restricted growth, thus cultural practices and harvesting are easy.

Methods of Asexual Propagation

• There are different methods, which can be used for commercial multiplication of various fruit plants, these includes:

• Cutting, • Layering, • Budding and;• Grafting.• Marcotting

Cutting Method• Detaching portion of the selected motherplant for the

purpose of producing new plants• The three main types of cuttings are….

– Stem– Leaf– Root

Stem Cutting

• The taking of a piece of stem to reproduce plants.

Leaf Cutting

• The use of leaves and sections of leaves to reproduce plants.

• Done from herbaceous plants.

• Veins must be cut!!!

Root Cutting

• The use of roots to reproduce plants.

• Should be spaced 3 inches apart in the rooting area.

Layering• The process of including branch and twig to

produce roots while still attached to the parent plant

• The rooting of plant parts while they are still attached to the “parent” plant.

• The types are….– Air Layering.– Trench Layering.– Mound Layering.

Air Layering

• Also called Chinese propagation.

• Area of plant is girdled and surrounded by a moist growing medium that is sealed in polyethylene film.

Trench Layering

• Mother plant is bent to the ground and buried.

• Plants form at each node on covered stem.

Mound Layering

• Rooted plant is cut off at the soil level.

• As the season progresses, soil is added to cover the growing shoots.

• After 1 year, the shoots are rooted and removed from the parent plant.

Grafting• Joining separate plant parts together so that

they form a union and grow together to make one plant.

• Scion– Piece of plant at the top

of the graft.• Rootstock

– The piece of the plant at the root or bottom of the graft.

Grafting

• Scion & rootstock are the same size:– Wedge– Splice– Whip & tongue– Approach

Grafting Methods

Grafting Methods

Procedure

Budding

A form of grafting when a bud is used.Faster or quicker than grafting.The 3 main methods are….

Patch budding.T-budding.Chip budding.

Marcotting

Tissue Culture

• Must have a sterile environment.

• Get the most plants in a short time.

• True to parent plants.