BANGLADESH RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS JOURNAL

ISSN: 1998-2003, Volume: 9, Issue: 1, Page: 44-49, September - October, 2013

Review Paper
INFLUENCE OF INDOLE-3-BUTYRIC ACID (IBA) ON SPROUTING AND
ROOTING POTENTIAL OF BOUGAINVILLEA SPECTABILIS CUTTINGS

H. Mehraj, I.H. Shiam, T. Taufique, S. Shahrin and A.F.M. Jamal Uddin*1

H. Mehraj, I.H. Shiam, T. Taufique, S. Shahrin and A.F.M. Jamal Uddin (2013). Influence of Indole-3-
Butyric Acid (IBA) on Sprouting and Rooting Potential of Bougainvillea spectabilis Cuttings.
Bangladesh Res. Pub. J. 9(1): 44-49. Retrieve from
http://www.bdresearchpublications.com/admin/journal/upload/1309107/1309107.pdf

Abstract
An experiment was carried out at the Department of Horticulture at Sher-e-Bangla
Agricultural University, Dhaka, Bangladesh for the investigation of the performance
of different concentration of Indole-3-Butyric Acid (IBA) for sprouting and rooting
potential of Bougainvillea spectabilis stem cutting during the period from May 2013
to August 2013. Five treatments viz. T0: Control; T1: IBA in dust form; T2: IBA 500-ppm;
T3: IBA 1000-ppm and T4: IBA 2000-ppm were exploited on the experiment with five
replication. In case of T2, T3 and T4 cuttings were soaked for 24 hours on the
respective solutions. From the experiment it was found that IBA play an important
role for successful asexual propagation of bougainvillea through cutting. Better
performance was found when cut stems were soaked for 24 hours before the
establishment of stem cutting. But performance was inhibited by increasing
concentrations of IBA in terms of all of the features on which data had taken.
During the experimental period, data was taken on different attributes and T3 (1000-
ppm) was performed as the best among the treatments which as followings: days
to first rooting (4.0), days to first sprout bud initiation (5.3), number of sprout
bud/cutting (3.6), number of leaves/cutting (35.2), length of sprout (15.0 cm),
number of branches/cutting (4.7), number of root/cutting (64.2), number of sub
root/cutting (25.8), longest root length (33.2 cm), longest root diameter (0.51 mm),
rooting % (100%), survival % of rooted cuttings (100%). Though 100% rooting was also
found in 500-ppm and 2000-pmm but only 1000-ppm was resulted 100% survival of
rooted cuttings.
Key words: Bougainvillea, Indole-3-Butyric Acid (IBA), Sprouting and Rooting.
Introduction
Bougainvillea spectabilis belongs to Nyctaginaceae family is an important flowering plant
commonly used as the decoration of fences and arbor with the explosion of color and
also used as barriers, and slope coverings. The general practice of multiplication for most
of the perennial ornamental plants is by the use of vegetative pant parts including stem,
leaves, terminal buds and roots due to its simplicity and practicability in developing
countries (Elgimabi, 2009). The plant can be propagated by semi hard wood cuttings.
Root initiation on cutting is very important means for the vegetative propagation.
Vegetative propagation helps in mass multiplication of a species having desired genetic
constitution and also to bring out the flowering and fruiting much earlier than from the
seedlings. Vegetative propagation of ornamental plants through stem cutting is one of
the cheapest and sometimes the only method available for multiplication. The cuttings of
many plant species will form adventitious roots readily but some plant species are very
difficult, can be encouraged to form roots with the use rooting hormones. Vegetative
propagation is the best way for the propagation of bougainvillea. Cutting is one of the
important way of vegetative production. In Bougainvillea the success of propagation by
stem cutting is very limited due to its poor rooting. Although percent of rooting and
survival or rooted cutting is not high enough without rooting hormone. It is well established

*Corresponding Author: E-mail: jamal4@yahoo.com

Department of Horticulture, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Influence of Indole-3-Butyric Acid 45
facts that growth regulator play an important role for the rooting on cuttings (Srivastava &
Manggil 1981, Puri & Shamet 1988). Indole-3-Butyric Acid (IBA) is an important plant growth
regulator, commonly used to promote and accelerate root formation of plants. It is the
most effective and widely used rooting hormone chemical in the world. IBA can trigger
the rooting in cutting. IBA thus, to support rapid multiplication of planting materials,
propagation of bougainvillea by stem cuttings using IBA rooting hormone can be a viable
option and have commercially valuable. Various concentrations of IBA influence on the
rooting percentage and number of roots per cutting. Considering the above facts current
experiment was conducted to search the proper IBA treatment for the asexual vegetative
propagation by cutting of Bougainvillea.
Materials and Method
An experiment was conducted at the Horticultural farm, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural
University, Dhaka, Bangladesh to investigate the influence of different concentration of
IBA on sprouting and rooting potential of bougainvillea cutting during the period from
May 2013 to August 2013. Five treatments viz. T0: Control; T1: IBA in dust form; T2: IBA 500-
ppm; T3: IBA 1000-ppm and T4: IBA 2000-ppm were exploited on the experiment with five
replication. One and half year mature stem were selected for stem cutting. 15 cm stem
were cut for the experiment with the help of a sharp knife to avoid injury of the cuttings.
Slanting cut was made at base in order to provide more nutrient accumulating area also
for receiving the maximum number of roots and horizontal cut were made on the top of
the cuttings. Each treatment contained 10 cutting on each replication. Cuttings were
soaked on 500-ppm, 1000-ppm, and 2000-ppm IBA solution for 24 hours and the IBA dust
were attached to the cuttings just before the establishment of the cuttings. Fungicides
were sprayed on the whole portion of the cuttings before establishment on soil. Data were
collected from all of the cutting and then mean was calculated. Five cuttings were
placed on the transparent bottle in water to observe the days to first root initiation. Data
were taken on days to first rooting (visual observation), days to first sprout bud initiation
(visual observation), number of sprout/cutting, number of leaves/cutting, length of sprout
(cm), number of branches/cutting, number of root/cutting, number of sub root/cutting,
longest root length (cm), longest root diameter (mm), rooting %, survival % of rooted
cuttings. Data for length of sprout (cm), number of branches/cutting, number of
root/cutting, number of sub root/cutting, longest root length (cm), longest root diameter
(mm) was taken at 45 days after establishment of stem cuttings. Rooted cuttings were
uprooted and planted on to poly bag to observe the survival percentage. Collected
data were statistically analyzed by using MSTAT-C computer package program then
mean was calculated and analysis of variance for each of treatment was represented by
F-test (Variance Ratio). Differences between treatments were evaluated by Least
Significance Difference (LSD) Test at 5% level of significance (Gomez and Gomez, 1984).
Result and Discussion
Table 1. Influence of different treatments on the different attributes of bougainvillea stem
cuttings
Days to
Numbe Longes
first Lengt Numbe Numbe Longes
Days to r of t root
Treat sprout h of r of r of sub t root
first branch diamet
ments bud sprout root/ root/ length
rooting es/cutti er
initiatio (cm) cutting cutting (cm)
ng (mm)
n
T0 7.0 a 8.3 a 5.0 e 2.1 d 19.8 e 6.3 e 10.7 e 0.15 d
T1 6.5 b 7.4 b 6.0 d 3.0 c 42.3 d 9.7 d 14.2 d 0.32 c
12.
T2 5.0 c 6.4 c c 3.0 c 55.7 c 16.2 b 21.6 c 0.39 b
0
15.
T3 4.0 e 5.3 d a 4.7 a 64.2 a 25.8 a 33.2 a 0.51 a
0
13.
T4 4.5 d 6.4 c b 3.5 b 59.6 b 12.1 c 26.4 b 0.43 b
0
LSD0.0
0.1 0.1 0.5 0.1 3.1 2.9 1.9 0.04
5
CV% 1.0 1.0 1.5 1.1 9.3 11.1 5.8 0.53
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Mehraj et al. 46
Days to first rooting: Significant variation was found on days to first rooting. Minimum days
(4.0) required for root initiation from T3 whereas maximum from T0 (7.0) followed by T1 (6.5)
(Table 1). For the vegetative propagation early root initiation is very important and for that
case T3 was responsible for early root initiation. So it can be stated that soaking the cutting
on IBA solution cause rapid root initiation on bougainvillea. In the present study, it was
observed that initially almost all treatments including control were able to induce rooting
in cuttings, however the days to first rooting vary with the IBA concentrations and
application of 1000-ppm IBA was found very effective.
Days to first sprout bud initiation: Significant variation was found on days to first sprout bud
initiation. Minimum days (5.3) required for first sprout bud initiation from T3 whereas
maximum from T0 (8.3) followed by T1 (7.4) (Table 1). From the experiment it was found that
T3 (IBA 1000-ppm) provided early rooting and thus may responsible for the early sprout bud
initiation. IBA is more effective for the number of sprout bud/cuttings reported by Kochhar
et al., in Juniperus crucus (2005) and by Kesari et al. (2009) in Pongamia pinnata.
Number of sprout bud/cutting: Number of sprout/cutting was significantly varied at
different days. Maximum number of sprout bud/cutting (3.6) was observed from T3 at 30
days after establishment of stem cutting whereas minimum from T0 (1.6) (Fig. 1). More
number of sprout/cutting indicated that more branching of the cutting which will cause
bushy appearances of the cutting also lead the cutting rapid growth and it was
happened due to the early root initiation because of the application of growth regulator
of IBA.
4.0
T0
T1
Number of sprout bud/cutting

T2
T3
T4

2.0

0.0
0 10 15 20 25 30
Days after establisment of stem cutting

Fig. 1. Effect of different treatments on number of sprout bud/cutting at different days

after establishment of stem cutting
Number of leaves/cutting: Significant variation was found due to application of different
treatments in terms of number leaves/cutting. Maximum number of leaves/cutting (35.2)
was observed from T3 whereas minimum from T0 (14.5) at 30 days after establishment of
stem cutting (Fig. 2 and Plate 1a). As T3 provided more number of sprout bud/cutting
which is responsible for the maximum number leaves/cutting.
40
T0
T1
T2
Number of leaves/cutting

T3
T4

20

0
10 15 20 25 30
Days after establisment of stem cutting

Fig. 2. Effect of different treatments on number of leaves /cutting at different days after
establishment of stem cutting

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Influence of Indole-3-Butyric Acid 47
Length of sprout: Length of sprout was varied significantly according to the treatments.
Longest sprout was found from T3 (15.0 cm) followed by T4 (13.0 cm) whereas minimum
from T0 (5.0 cm) (Table 1 and Plate 1a). Length of sprout means rapid growth of cutting.
From T4 treatment it was observed that cuttings grow rapidly that the others. T4 was
offered the early rooting and sprout bud initiation also maximum number of sprout bud
and leaves per cutting which allow more uptakes of nutrients from soil and more food
production for growth.
Number of branches/cuttings: Significant variation was found on number of
branches/cuttings in terms of different treatments. Maximum number of branches/
cuttings (4.7) was found from T3 followed by T4 (3.5) whereas minimum from T0 (2.1) (Table 1
and Plate 1a).
Number of root/cuttings: It was observed that there was a significant variation among the
different treatments in terms of number of root/cuttings. T3 provided maximum number of
root/cuttings (64.2) followed by T4 (59.6), T2 (55.7) whereas minimum from T0 (19.8) (Table 1
and Plate 1b). From the present study it is reveled that soaking the cutting on IBA solution
increases the number of root on cuttings because of the more number of rooting ability of
IBA. Ramdayal et al. (2001) and Gupta et al. (2002) also found the maximum number of
root on 1000-ppm IBA.
Number of sub-root/cuttings: Number of sub-root/cuttings varied significantly among the
treatments. Maximum number of sub-root/cuttings was observed from T3 (25.8) whereas
minimum from T0 (6.3) (Table 1 and Plate 1b). One possibility for beneficial influence of IBA
might be in providing the auxin over a longer period of time or that IBA conjugates are a
better source of free auxin through hydrolysis than (Nordstrom et al., 1991; Yang and
Davies, 1999).
Longest root length: It was observed that longest root length was differed significantly
among the different treatments. Longest root was observed from T3 (33.2 cm) followed by
T4 (26.4 cm) whereas minimum from T0 (10.7 cm) (Table 1). Increased root length treated
with IBA due to the enhanced hydrolysis of carbohydrates, synthesis of new proteins, cell
enlargement and cell division induced by the auxins (Strydem and Hartman, 1960).
Ramdayal et al. (2001) also found the longest root on 1000-ppm IBA.
Longest root diameter: It was observed that longest root diameter was differed
significantly among the different treatments. Maximum diameter of the longest root was
observed from T3 (0.51 mm) followed by T4 (0.43 mm) whereas minimum from T0 (0.15 mm)
(Table 1).
Rooting (%): Maximum percentage of rooting was observed from T2 (100%), T3 (100%) and
T4 (100%) whereas minimum from T0 (70%) followed by T1 (90%). Soaking the cuttings on IBA
solution resulted 100% rooting. The percentage of rooted cuttings were increased which
might be due to the application of proper IBA concentrations resulted high carbohydrate
and low nitrogen level lead to more root formation (Carlson, 1929). Ramdayal et al. (2001)
also found the maximum rooting percentage on 1000-ppm IBA. Gupta et al. (2002)
reported that treatment of Bougainvillea cuttings with 1000-ppm IBA gave maximum
rooting (100%) with higher number of roots in soaking method (Fig. 3).
Rooted cuttings survival (%): Maximum survival percentage of rooted cuttings was
observed from T3 (100%) followed by T4 (90%) and T3 (90%) whereas minimum from T0 (60%)
followed by T1 (80%). Soaking the cuttings only on 1000-ppm of IBA solution was resulted
100% survival of rooted cuttings (Fig. 3).

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Mehraj et al. 48

110.0

90.0

Percentage (%)
Rooting %
70.0

Survival % of
rooted cuttings

50.0
T0 T1 T2 T3 T4
Treatments

Fig. 3. Effect of different treatments on number on rooting percentage and survival

percentage of rooted cuttings
Conclusion
Plants can be transplanted when they have rooted, from the above result and discussion
it can be concluded soaking the cut stem on 1000-ppm IBA solution for 24 hours before
the establishment of the stem cutting can be used for the successful asexual propagation
of bougainvillea through stem cutting as cuttings of this treatment sprouted, rooted and
survive more percentage of rooted cutting along with more number of root, sprout bud,
maximum root length and diameter.
References
Carlson, M.C., (1929). Micro-chemical studies of rooting and cuttings. Bot. Gaz. 87: 64.

Elgimabi, M.E.N.E.2009. Improvement of propagation by hardwood cuttings with or

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Gupta, V.N., Banerj, B.K. and Datta, S.K. 2002. Effect of auxin on rooting and sprouting
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Kesari, V., Krishnamachari, A. and Rangan, L. 2009. Effect of auxins on adventitious rooting
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Kochhar, S., Kochhar, V.K., Singh. S.P., Katiyar, R.S. and Pushpangadan, P. 2005. Differential
rooting and sprouting behaviour of two Jatropha species and associated
physiological and biochemical changes. Curr. Sci. 89(6): 936-939.

Nordstrom, A.C., Jacobs, F.A. and Eliasson, L. 1991. Effect of exogenous indole-3-acetic
acid and indole-3-butyric acid on internal levels of the respective auxins and their
conjugation with aspartic acid during adventitious root formation in pea cuttings.
Plant Physiol. 96:856861.

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Influence of Indole-3-Butyric Acid 49
Puri, S. and Shamet, G. S. 1988. Rooting of stem cuttings of some social forestry species. Int.
Tree Crops J. 5: 63 -70.

Ramdayal, P., Gupta, A.K., Saini, R.S. and Sharma, J.R. 2001. Effect of auxin on the rooting
of cutting in Bougainvillea var Mary Palmer. Haryana J. Hort. Sci. 30: 215-216.

Srivastava, P.B.L. and Manggil, P. 1981. Vegetative propagation of some dipterocarps by

cuttings. Malaysian Forester, 46: 301-313.

Strydem, D.K. and Hartman. H.T. 1960. Effect of indole butyric acid and respiration and
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T0 T1 T2 T3 T4
(a)

T0 T1 T2 T3 T4
(b)
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Mehraj et al. 50

Plate 1. Pictorial presentation of the performance of bougainvillea against different

treatments at 45 days after establishment of stem cuttings (a) Sprouting (b) Rooting

T0: Control; T1: Dust; T2: 500-ppm; T3: 1000-ppm and T4: 2000-ppm

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