Vegetative Plant Propagation
(book excerpts)Many plants are propagated by seed in the greenhouse, but for selected cultivars that must be reproduced as clones, vegetative propagation methods are used. Asexual propagation of a plant’s vegetative parts (e.g., roots, stems, or leaves) only involves mitosis (non-reductive cell division) and no genetic recombination. Clonal or asexual propagation results in a new generation of plants genetically identical to the parent or source plant, thus carrying forward all desirable/known characteristics in a predictable manner. In most cases, it allows for plants to be grown to a size suitable for transplanting in less time than from seed. Also, certain plants produce seeds that are sterile or have poor viability, which makes sexual propagation difficult or impossible. In addition, it may be the only way to perpetuate some cultivars, and it bypasses the juvenile characteristics of certain species. The most common vegetative propagation methods include the use of cuttings, layering, grafting, budding, plant division, and tissue culture. The method used depends on the plant species, as well as grower capabilities. Most young plants are patent-protected, so growers are limited to what popular plant varieties they can propagate from cuttings.
Click on the following topics for more information on vegetative plant propagation.
Topics Within This Chapter:
- Plant Propagation by Cuttings
- Leaf Cuttings
- Whole Leaf with Petiole
- Whole Leaf without Petiole
- Split Vein
- Leaf Sections
- Stem Cuttings
- Stem-Tip Cuttings
- Cane Cuttings
- Layering
- Types of Layering
- Rooting Hormones
- Powdered Products
- Liquid Products
- Propagation Environment for Plant Cuttings
- Humidity Management
- Vapor Pressure Deficit
- Light Management
- Light Intensity
- Daylength (Photoperiod)
- Light Quality
- Moisture Maintenance
- Temperature Management
- Rooting Media
- Fertitilization
- Carbon Dioxide Enrichment
- Disease Control
- Hardening Cuttings
