BENZYLADENINE INCREASES BRANCHING OF HERBACEOUS PERENNIALS

Abstract

Many of the herbaceous perennials, especially the newer cultivars of Echinacea, are poorly branching, slow to fill out the pot, and produce few propagules. Configure (6-BA, Fine Americas, Inc.), a new product recently labeled for branching of floricultural crops, was evaluated on a variety of perennials over two seasons. Configure was applied once as a foliar spray at rates of 0, 300, 600, 900 or 1200 mg/L to established plants grown in 1.1-L pots filled with a peat/pine bark medium. Plant height and number of branches were determined at 2-week intervals after treatment (WAT). In spring trials, Configure improved the basal branching of Echinacea purpurea ‘Double Decker’ with a three-fold increase in the number of new shoots per plant with a single foliar application of 300 mg/L (control 1.0 vs. 300 mg/L 3.8 shoots at 2 WAT). Higher rates further increased the number of basal shoots. Echinacea purpurea ‘White Swan’ had a better branching habit and was more responsive to Configure with increased branching at 4 WAT with treatment of 300 mg/L; again higher rates increased the number of new branches. Vinca minor ‘Sterling Silver’ showed a significant quadratic increase in the number of branches at 4 WAT with Configure which did not persist but suggests that there may be value in multiple applications. Coreopsis verticillata ‘Zagreb’ plants treated with Configure had increased branches at 2 WAT that also did not persist. In Fall trials, branching of Echinacea ‘Ruby Star’ increased nearly 2-fold (control 2.6 vs. 300 mg/L 5.0 shoots) at 2 WAT. Similar results were observed with Echinacea ‘Magnus’. Clematis jackmanii, Phlox paniculata ‘Bright Eyes’, Buddleia × weyeriana ‘Honeycomb’ and Coreopsis rosea ‘Sweet Dreams’, were not responsive to Configure. In all tests, positive results persisted throughout the six to ten week studies. Configure offers a new tool for improving the finished quality and propagation potential of Echinacea cultivars and the potential for improving branching of other herbaceous perennials.