Rooting of black elderberry (Sambucus nigra L.) by treating of indole-3-acetic acid

Abstract

Black elderberry (Sambucus nigra L.) is a perennial plant in the form of a shrub or semi-shrub in the Adoxaceae family. It spreads naturally in the Black Sea, Central Anatolia, Southern and Eastern Anatolia regions of Turkey. Black elderberry fruits are traditionally used as food and medicine in Europe. Hippocrates considered it the greatest medicinal plant of nature. In traditional treatment, its flowers are used as a diaphoretic analgesic. Its fruits are used to treat prostate and hemorrhoids; pharmaceutical products are used to treatment cold and flu symptoms. Propagation from seed is complex due to the plant's high seed dormancy. Therefore, the plant is propagated by cuttings. This study aimed to root the elderberry annual and biennial wood cuttings by IAA (Indol-3-Acetic Acid) application. Cuttings were taken on 09.11.2020 from annual and biennial wood branches, 10-15 cm long, with two nodes. On the same day, the cuttings were treated with 0-5-15-30 ppm doses of IAA for 15 seconds, then planted in 25x30 cm pots filled with a mixture of worm manure+peat+soil+perlite at a ratio of 1:1:1:1.5. According to the experimental design of split plots randomized blocks, the experiment was established in the greenhouse condition with 3 replications and 5 plants in each replicate (pot). In this research, it was observed that the first rooting was 17 days after planting. The root lengths were measured by removing them from the pots 120 days after planting, waiting for the strengthening of root development. As a result of the research, the best root length and development were determined by control (20.47 cm) and 30 ppm (22.53 cm) treatments. Annual cuttings (96%) are rooted better than biennial cuttings (76%). While the highest rooting rate in stem cuttings was obtained with 30 ppm (100%) IAA application, weak shoot development was observed in the identical wood cuttings. Control (93%) cuttings followed the rooting rate, but shoot development was better than other applications. As a result, considering the root length and shoot development, it was concluded that two-node annual wood cuttings taken in November could be used for rooting and reproduction without the need for IAA growth hormone