Paclobutrazol, Uniconazole, or Flurprimidol Applied at Various Concentrations as a Substrate Drench or Through Subirrigation Have Little Effect on Bee Balm Growth

Summer and fall studies investigated the control of growth of bee balm ( Monarda didyma ‘Marshall’s Delight’) by paclobutrazol, uniconazole, or flurprimidol applied to the substrate as a surface drench or through subirrigation. Flurprimidol and uniconazole were applied at 0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, or 2.0 ppm (0, 0.09, 0.18, 0.27, or 2.0 mg/pot), while paclobutrazol was applied at 0, 2, 4, 6, or 8 ppm (0, 0.6, 1.2, 1.8, or 2.4 mg/pot). Substrate drench applications were more effective than applications through subirrigation at reducing plant growth. Few trends in application concentrations within plant growth regulator occurred for the plant parameters measured. Based on inconsistent plant responses between the two studies and few differences among application concentrations, we do not recommend any of these plant growth regulators for controlling plant size of bee balm during production without further testing in production environments specific to bee balm.