Changes of Soluble Sugars and Enzymatic Activities During Adventitious Rooting in Cuttings of Grewia optiva as Affected by Age of Donor Plants and Auxin Treatments

Rooting and sprouting traits of single-node leafy cuttings (SNCs) of Grewia optiva have been studied in relation to age of donor plants and auxin treatments. SNCs from 1-, 5-, 10- and 15-year- old donors and treated IBA 3000 mg L-1 gave the best responses. Periodic sampling was performed to examine Total Soluble Sugar (TTS), Indole Acetic Acid (IAA) oxidase and peroxidase (PER) activities in the rooting zone during Adventitious Root Formation (ARF). TTS decreased with passage of time from 0 to 40 days of analysis. Auxin treatments exhibit higher TSS in all donors. IAA-oxidase and PER reduced with maturation. IAA-oxidase was highest in untreated cuttings while auxin treatments had enhanced PER activity. IAA-oxidase was found to decrease up to 20 days and increased thereafter. PER increased with time from the day of planting upto its 30 days, followed by a remarkable decline at 40, irrespective of age of donor plants or auxin treatments. Both enzyme activities remained higher in SNCs of 1-year-old donors which rooted more profusely as compared other donors. Present study suggests auxin treatments have activated carbohydrate metabolism to release energy for ARF. IAA-oxidase and PER activities seems to involve for triggering, initiation and elongation of root primordia.