Evaluation of different rooting stimulators and substrates to produce guava clone plants through softwood cuttings

The clonal propagation of guava (<i>Psidium guajava</i> L.) is essential to avoid segregation, and its multiplication through cuttings is the easiest and cheapest way to raise a nursery, as other propagation techniques are laborious and need expertise. The current study was planned to evaluate the best rooting stimulators and rooting substrates for guava nursery propagation. In this experiment, the guava-prepared cuttings were treated with rooting stimulators, indole butyric acid (IBA) and paclobutrazol (PB) with concentrations (0, 200, 400, and 600 ppm) and were planted in independent rooting substrates (sand, silt and topsoil) under polytunnels. The results revealed that the highest number of roots, root length and root weight were achieved in cuttings planted in the sand with IBA 400 ppm concentration. In contrast, the highest survival percentage (50%) was obtained in silt substrate with a similar concentration of IBA. However, sand’s lowest and highest concentrations of both rooting hormones produced zero plants. In shooting capacity, maximum leaves (13.6) and sprouts (3.76) were obtained using IBA 400 ppm in silt substrate. The highest sprouting length (6.80 cm) and cutting height (26.2 cm) were attained with sand using PB 200 ppm. In the overall comparison, rooting stimulator IBA 400 ppm and rooting substrate silt performed better than other rooting stimulators and rooting substrates.