Brassinosteroid effects on the precocity and yield of cladodes of cactus pear ( Opuntia ficus-indica (L) Mill.)

Abstract

The effects of two brassinosteroids (BRs) analogues, BB-6 and BB-16, were evaluated in concentrations from 0.00001 to 10 mg l −1. They were applied to the cladodes of Opuntia ficus-indica (L) Mill. var. lutea (Cactaceae), grown under both greenhouse and field conditions. Both BR analogues stimulated larger numbers of vegetative buds under both greenhouse and field conditions, which increased the number of harvested cladodes and total harvested fresh weight. The BRs also promoted precocity, accelerating growth during the first stages of vegetative bud development, but did not alter the morphology of the harvested cladodes.