Vegetative propagation of Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) by
stem cuttings
Paper Presenter: Chooramanee Dussooa
Author(s):
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Chooramanee Dussooa
Navindra Boodia, Lecturer, UoM
Balraj Rajkomar, Senior Lecturer, UoM
Devina Bhookhun-Seeruttun, Technician, UoM
Roselle, Hibiscus sabdariffa L., belongs to the Malvaceae family. Roselle is an annual shrub
with dark red stem, yellow conspicuous flowers and dark red colored fleshy calyx. Roselle
has numerous uses, both in the food and pharmaceutical industry. Hibiscus sabdariffa L is
usually grown from seeds. This study was undertaken to determine whether Roselle could
be successfully propagated vegatatively, using stem cuttings. This was viewed as a
strategy for cloning high yielding variants of the local Roselle variety.
Hibiscus sabdariffa L stock plants were grown at the University of Mauritius Farm. Stem
cuttings were harvested early mornings from healthy stock plants using clean and
disinfected pruning knives. Two types of cuttings were used in this experiment: soft wood
and semi hard wood. Stem cuttings that were soft and succulent were classified as soft
wood cuttings, while those being partially matured were considered as semi hardwood
(Hartman et al, 1994).
Rooting behaviour of Roselle stem cuttings were studied, using auxins as rooting
hormones. The auxins used were: Indol-3-ylbutyric acid (IBA) and α- Naphthaleneacetic
acid (NAA). The plant growth regulators were applied using the quick dip method at a
concentration of 500 and 1000 parts per millions (ppm). The cuttings were dipped in IBA
and NAA solutions for 5 minutes. The experiment was laid in a completely randomized
design with 10 treatments, replicated 5 times. The cuttings were sticked in soil medium
and kept in a shade house and watered regularly.
Over a period of 6 weeks, the stem cuttings were uprooted and root count, number of
leaves, fresh weight, dry matter content, shoot length, and cutting diameter were
determined. The ratio of root dry matter to total dry matter content of the cuttings was
also calculated.
In week 2, 100% of the stem cuttings had formed roots. The results of the experiment
showed that a high number of roots were formed in cuttings treated with both 500 and
1000 ppm of NAA and IBA. However a slight decrease in rooting was obtained, when 1000
ppm IBA and 1000 NAA was used in soft wood and semi hard wood respectively. Rooting
was affected by the type of cuttings and level of auxin used (P< 0.05). The 500-ppm
treatments yielded a 200% increase in the number of roots of the stem cuttings compared
to the control. With time, dry matter content increased when higher auxin concentrations
were used. The dry matter content was positively correlated to root formation. The type of
cutting used and auxins treatment significantly affected the dry matter content of the stem
cuttings (P<0.05).
Significance of study
This study showed that the rooting of stem cuttings from the Roselle plant was optimal
when softwood cuttings were dipped in 500 ppm of IBA or NAA. Propagation of Roselle by
cutting is an easy and cheap method of producing clones, which could be used to supply
plants for research purposes. This propagation technique can also be exploited for the
quick establishment of roselle orchards and for the large-scale commercial exploitation of
these plants, which can potentially benefit the expanding industry of plant-derived health
products.
Selected Bibliography
Babatunde, F.E. and Mofoke, A.L.E. (2006). Performance of Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.)
as influenced by irrigation schedules. Pakistan Journal of Nutrition 5(4): 363-367
Blythe, E.K., Sibley, J.L., Ruter, J.M., and Tilt, K.M. (2004). Cutting Propagation of foliage
crops using a foliar application of auxin. Scientia Horticulturae 103:31-37
Carpenter, W.J. and Cornell, J.A. (1992). Auxin application duration and concentration
govern rooting of Hibiscus stem cuttings. Journal of the American Society for Horticultural
Science, 117(1): 68-74
Hartman, B.H., Kester, D.E., Davies, F.T.Jr. (1994). Plant Propagation: Principles and
Techniques. Prentice Hall, New Jersey, USA, pp 170-288.
Saqri, F. and Alderson, P. G. (1996). Effect of IBA, cutting types and rooting media on
rooting of Rosa centifolia. J. Hort. Sci., 72(5), 729-737