Rooting media and biostimulator goteo treatment effect the adventitious root formation of pennisetum ‘vertigo’ cuttings and the quality of the final product

Abstract

This study evaluated rooting of Pennisetum ‘Vertigo’ cuttings and development and the nutritional status of rooted plants. Cuttings of Pennisetum ‘Vertigo’ rooted in a perlite or peat medium were treated with Goëmar Goteo biostimulator as follows: (1) soaking (2) watering (3) spraying (4) no Goteo applied (control). Then, 83.3–100% of cuttings formed adventitious roots. The, 100% rooting was obtained for plants in perlite when Goteo spraying or watering was used for plants rooted in peat only after Goteo watering application. Cuttings rooted in perlite had 30% more roots and they were longer than in peat. Goteo watering of cuttings affected root elongation in both peat and perlite. Neither rooting media nor biostimulator treatment affected root dry weight (DW). Rooting medium after 2 months of pot cultivation had no effect on biometric features of plants, but those grown from cuttings rooted in peat had a higher fresh weight (FW) compared to those rooted in perlite. Plants developed from Goteo-treated cuttings were higher compared to the control plants. Goteo watering during rooting stimulated the formation of new shoots in the greenhouse cultivation. Plants from cuttings rooted in perlite had more Fe and Cu in their leaves, especially when they were Goteo-watered. Goteo increased P content in plants derived from biostimulator-watered cuttings, and K in plants from cuttings soaked in Goteo and rooted in perlite.