Dwarfing of Some Flowering Shrubs By Using Ethrel

In Bougainvillea vars. Mary Palmer and Mahara, foliar application of ethrel at 500 ppm suppressed shoot growth to the extent of 35.7 to 43.5 per cent and 39.1 to 42.0 per cent respectively at 150 days, depending on the number of application. Treatment with ethrel, in general, delayed flowering in both the varieties and reduced the number of bracts in the variety Mahara. Ethrel at 1000 ppm effectively suspressed the plant growth, reduced branching and delayed flowering in Hibiscus rosa-sinensis. In Ixora chinensis, plant growth was markedly suppressed by the treatment with ethrel, while it stimulated branching, enhanced flowering and significantly increased the number of flowers. In Thunbergia erecta the higher concentrations of ethrel (500 and 1000 ppm) effectively suppressed the plant growth, improved branching, treatment with 250 and 500 ppm concentrations significantly increased the flower number.