Vegetative Propagation

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VEGETATIVE PROPAGATION OR ASEXUAL PROPAGATION

Vegetative propagation of plants is a form of asexual reproduction which involves the regeneration
of new plants from portions of vegetative organs such as stem, leaves and roots.

Propagule: The part of plant or the plant material that is used for vegetative propagation is
called propagule

Clone: The population of genetically identical individuals produced from a single plant through
vegetative propagation.

METHODS OF VEGETATIVE PROPAGATION

Vegetative propagation can be natural or artificial. Natural vegetative propagation is a


spontaneous natural process of plant reproduction. Artificial vegetative propagation occurs through
techniques developed and applied by man. Natural vegetative propagation includes reproduction
through runners, rhizomes, bulbs, corms etc.

Artificial vegetative propagation

This is plant propagation using stem, leaves and roots of plants artificially. It enables the rapid
production of new plants preserving all desirable traits and hence is widely adopted in agriculture
and horticulture. The commonest methods include cutting, layering, grafting and budding.

1) CUTTING
Cutting is the vegetative propagation by which new plants are raised from the cuttings of
vegetative parts of a parent plant.
a) Stem cutting
In stem cutting the vegetative part used is stem. There are two types of stem cuttings-Stem
tip cuttings and stem section cuttings
i) Stem tip cuttings or terminal cuttings
In stem tip cutting the tip of stem is cut out and used to produce a new plant. Eg.
Lantana, Duranta, Phyllanthus etc.
ii) Stem section cuttings
In stem section cuttings pieces of stem are used for planting. Rooting of these cuttings are
stimulated by the use of rooting hormones like indole acetic acid (IAA), indole butyric acid
(IBA), naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) etc. Stem section cuttings are of different types such as
softwood cuttings, semi-hardwood cuttings, deciduous hardwood cuttings, conifer cuttings and
herbaceous cuttings. Eg. Rose, Hibiscus, Tapioca, Croton, Coleus, Sugarcane, Bougainvillaea
etc.
b) Root cuttings
In root cuttings the selected part for cutting is root. Roots are cut, trimmed and planted. New
roots and adventitious buds arise from the planted cuttings and new plant arises.
Eg. bread-fruit plant
Factors affecting rooting of cuttings

• Nutritional status of the parent plant


• Hormone level (Auxin)
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• Juvenility and position
• Darkness
• Light
• Temperature
• Moisture
• Nutrition
• Rooting medium
• Sanitation
2) LAYERING
Layering is the production of a new plant from an intact branch of a parent plant by
inducing root initiation. The intact branch that produces roots is called layer. Once roots are
formed, the branch is severed from the parent plant and planted as an independent plant.
Layering fall under two main groups- air layering and ground layering.
a) Air layering
Air layering is also called gootee, pot layering or Chinese layering. It is a typeof layering
in which an aerial branch is girdled (a ring of bark is removed) or wounded to promote
rooting. The girdled part is then wrapped with a moist rooting medium such as coconut husk,
vermiculite or soil and covered with polythene sheet. Roots start growing from above the girdle
and when adequate roots are formed the branch is cut off and planted which thereafter give
rise to new plants. Air layering is commonly employed in plants with woody branches like
Mango, Guava, Crotons, Ixora etc. Application of rooting hormones such as IAA, NAA,
IBA etc. at the girdled part promotes rooting. Ground layering
Ground layering is done in plants with branches which can be bent to the ground. There
are different types of ground layering, Simple layering, Compound layering, Mound
layering and Trench layering.
Simple layering
Simple layering is the easiest method of layering and is done in plants with flexible stems. In
simple layering a convenient lower branch is selected and bent down to the soil. The part
which touches the ground is girdled or nickedand covered with moist soil. The girdled portion
is watered regularly to initiate rooting. Adventitious roots sprout from the covered part. Eg.
Philodendron, Diffenbackia etc
Advantages of layering
 The daughter plant will get water, nutrients, growth hormones from motherplant until it
is severed
 Easy to carry out
 High chances of rooting
 Plant which cannot be propagated by cutting can be done by layering
Disadvantages of layering
 Many plants cannot be produced from a mother plant in a short time
 Ground layering possible only for plants with low-lying branches
 Requires regular watering
3) GRAFTING
Grafting is a method of asexual propagation in which parts of two different plants are
joined together so that they continue their growth as one plant. In grafting a stem cutting
from a donor plant is incorporated with a rooted recipient plant.
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Scion or graft: The stem cutting from the donor plant. The scion must be superior to the
root stock in desirable traits.
Root stock: The rooted recipient plant to which the scion is attached. The stock
must be highly resistant to pests, parasites and diseases and must efficientlyabsorb water
and minerals through roots.
Composite plant: The new plant formed by the union of scion and stockthrough
grafting.
Callus: A mass of thin walled parenchymatous cells developing at the junctionof a
graft union.
Significance of grafting
• Enables propagation of plants whose cuttings will not produce roots
• Disease-resistant cultivars
• Cultivars with desirable traits
• The plants produced by grafting are qualitatively superior than parents andflowers and
fruits early
a) Approach grafting
In approach grafting scion and stock are rooted in soil. A piece of bark is rooted is sliced
away from corresponding portions of scion and stock. The cut portions are pressed against
each other, sealed with grafting wax and tightly tied together. Once the healing is
complete, the top of the stock above the graft join and the base of the scion below the graft
joint are removed. The two common methods of approach grafting are splice approach
graft and tongue approach grafting.
i) Splice approach grafting
In this method, both scion and stock must be of equal thickness. A thin slice of bark and wood
about 6-7 cm long is removed from the stock at a height about 25-30 cm from the soil surface. A
similar cut is made on the scion shoot also. Both scion and stock are tied firmly with jute fibre,
twine, waxed tape or adhesive rubber tape. After 40-60 days the union becomes complete.
ii) Tongue approach grafting
It is also called tongue grafting, whip grafting or splice grafting. Stock and scion have almost
the same diameter. In tongue grafting the stock is cut in a slanting way. On the cut end of
stock a downward cut is made to produce the tongue. The scion is cut in a similar slanting
way as stock and an upward cut is made on the cut end of the scion. The scion is then
tightly fixed to the cut end of the stock and sealed with grafting wax.
Cleft grafting
This is the method of grafting in which clefts or notches are made in the stock and wedge shaped
cut is made in the scion. The wedge shaped scion is inserted into the cleft shape of stock and
sealed with grafting wax and tied.

4) BUDDING
Budding is the vegetative propagation in which the scion is a single bud. The
mother plants from which buds are taken to be used as scions are called budwood.
Fully matured buds are taken and inserted into a recipient plant known as root stock
and both are sealed together. Budding is regarded as pseudografting or bud grafting.
a) T-budding
In this method the scion (bud) is cut in a shield shape and a T shaped cut is made in the
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bark of the root stock. The shield shape scion is inserted into the Tshaped cut of the
stock and is sealed with grafting wax.
b) Patch budding
In this method a patch of the bark is removed from the stock and the bud pieceis cut in the same
shape as the stock. The bud piece must coincide with that of the root stock. The patch bud is
wrapped to seal the cut edges and to hold the bud piece tightly into the root stock.
Advantages of vegetative propagation
• Useful for plants in which sexual propagation fails, seedless plants and sterileseeds
• Steady multiplication of plants and quick establishment
• Preserves genetic purity, genetic constancy and hereditary potentialities
• Produce genetically identical offsprings hence uniformity of produce quality
• Vegetative propagation through grafting brings about best combinations ofeconomic
advantage
• The plants produced by grafting are qualitatively superior than parents andflowers and
fruits early
Disadvantages of vegetative propagation
• Systemic infections spread to entire progeny
• Plant materials are bulky to handle and transport.
• Due to uniformity of plants a disease or infection can wipe out entire
populations
• Mechanized propagation is not practical every time

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