Effects of Plant Growth Regulators from Natural or Synthetic Sources on Horticultural Plants

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Molecular Biology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2021) | Viewed by 10681

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Sciences, University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, 90128 Palermo, Italy
Interests: soilless cultivation; plant nutrition; nutrient solutions; organic farming; biostimulants; phytohormones
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Sciences, University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, 90128 Palermo, Italy
Interests: horticulture; floriculture; plant protection; sustainable agriculture; salt stress; plant biostimulants; phytohormones; postharvest; fruit quality
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Sciences, University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, 90128 Palermo, Italy
Interests: horticulture production; cut flower production; crop management; compost production; plant hormones, biostimulants
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Plant growth regulators (PGRs) are natural or synthetic compounds with hormone-like activities. Like hormones, PGPRs act as chemical messengers for intercellular signaling and play a fundamental role in plant growth and development and response mechanisms to a wide range of abiotic and biotic stresses.

They are naturally synthesized by plants and microorganisms or can be produced from organic or chemical sources, and can be grouped into classes of compounds such as auxins, gibberellins, cytokinins, abscisic acid, ethylene, brassinosteroids, etc. 

The use of PGRs has become common practice in agriculture from nursery till postharvest management through the application of synthetic compounds or microbial and non-microbial plant biostimulants because their exogenous supply can trigger a complex network that modifies and regulates the major plant physiological processes. The mechanisms underlying the effects of PGRs, and their roles in plant growth and development, the interaction or independence of their mode of action, and hormonal cross-talk under biotic and abiotic stresses are crucial for horticultural plant sustainable management and needs to be investigated using innovative approaches.

Therefore, the Special Issue aims to collect research articles, reviews, short notes, and opinion articles focusing on the effects and the mode of action of the PGRs from organic and synthetic sources and their effectiveness in improving plant growth and tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses.

Dr. Alessandra Moncada
Dr. Alessandro Miceli
Dr. Filippo Vetrano
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • plant growth regulators
  • phytohormones
  • biostimulants
  • plant growth-promoting microorganisms
  • vegetables
  • biotic and abiotic stresses

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

8 pages, 524 KiB  
Article
Jasmonic Acid Activates the Fruit-Pedicel Abscission Zone of ‘Thompson Seedless’ Grapes, Especially with Co-Application of 1-Aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic Acid
by Matthew W. Fidelibus, Peter Petracek and Steven McArtney
Plants 2022, 11(9), 1245; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11091245 - 5 May 2022
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2889
Abstract
Two studies were conducted to determine how methyl jasmonate (MeJA), jasmonic acid (JA), and 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) affect grape berry abscission in the initial days after treatment. The overarching goal was to determine whether JA, with or without ACC, may hold the potential [...] Read more.
Two studies were conducted to determine how methyl jasmonate (MeJA), jasmonic acid (JA), and 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) affect grape berry abscission in the initial days after treatment. The overarching goal was to determine whether JA, with or without ACC, may hold the potential to sufficiently reduce fruit detachment force (FDF) and increase the proportion of berries with dry stem scars while minimizing preharvest abscission, effects that could be useful in the production of stemless table grapes. On Thompson Seedless grapes, JA was at least as effective as MeJA for stimulating berry abscission based on reduced fruit detachment force (FDF) and yielding detached berries with dry stem scars. Further, since previous studies showed that ACC improved MeJA-induced grape abscission, we tested ACC effects on JA activity. We found that JA rapidly induced preharvest berry abscission, confirming previous results. ACC alone did not induce preharvest berry abscission, but ACC improved the effectiveness of JA on reducing FDF and increasing dry stem scar development. These studies also demonstrated that JA-induced abscission occurs within the first day after treatment. Commercial use of JA plus ACC as an abscission agent requires that FDF sufficiently declines, and the incidence of dry stem scars increases, prior to a significant increase in fruit abscission. However, the rapid progression of fruit abscission may require harvest either within 24 and 48 h after treatment or the use of a passive catch system. Full article
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17 pages, 3575 KiB  
Article
Endogenous Hormone Profile and Sugars Display Differential Distribution in Leaves and Pseudobulbs of Laelia anceps Plants Induced and Non-Induced to Flowering by Exogenous Gibberellic Acid
by Olga Tejeda-Sartorius, Ramón Marcos Soto-Hernández, Rubén San Miguel-Chávez, Libia Iris Trejo-Téllez and Humberto Caamal-Velázquez
Plants 2022, 11(7), 845; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11070845 - 23 Mar 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2258
Abstract
A profile of endogenous hormones and sugars in leaves and pseudobulbs of Laelia anceps subsp. anceps (Orchidaceae) plants induced and non-induced to flowering by the effect of different doses of exogenous gibberellic acid (GA3), considering the current and back growth structures [...] Read more.
A profile of endogenous hormones and sugars in leaves and pseudobulbs of Laelia anceps subsp. anceps (Orchidaceae) plants induced and non-induced to flowering by the effect of different doses of exogenous gibberellic acid (GA3), considering the current and back growth structures (CGS and BGS), were investigated. A factorial experiment with five doses of GA3 and two growth structures was designed. Adult plants with undifferentiated vegetative buds were selected and sprayed with doses of 0, 400, 600, 800, and 1000 mg GA3 L−1. The main results showed a strong interaction between GA3 dose and growth structures, which promoted the highest kinetin (KIN) concentration in CGS. Exogenous GA3 increased endogenous GA3 in leaves and pseudobulbs induced (I-Leaf and I-PSB) and non-induced (NI-Leaf and NI-PSB) to flowering. For sugar concentration, the 400 mg L−1 GA3 dose promotes significant interaction with the CGS in NI-PSB. In general, the hormone profile revealed opposite balances of endogenous hormone concentrations for KIN, zeatin (ZEA), trans-zeatin (T-ZEA), indoleacetic acid (IAA), indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) and GA3, not only for growth structures but also for vegetative organs analyzed, depending on whether the plants were induced or not induced to flowering, with the highest concentration of endogenous hormones in pseudobulbs. Likewise, different sugar concentration balances were observed. These balances of both endogenous hormones and sugars are likely to be involved in the flowering of L. anceps. Full article
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14 pages, 1618 KiB  
Article
Image Analysis of Adventitious Root Quality in Wild Sage and Glossy Abelia Cuttings after Application of Different Indole-3-Butyric Acid Concentrations
by Danilo Loconsole, Giuseppe Cristiano and Barbara De Lucia
Plants 2022, 11(3), 290; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11030290 - 21 Jan 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2890
Abstract
Adventitious root (AR) formation is a key step in stem cutting propagation of economically important woody ornamentals. Inadequate environmental and hormonal conditions can lead to the production of an insufficient or modest number of ARs in stem cutting, with a consequent decrease in [...] Read more.
Adventitious root (AR) formation is a key step in stem cutting propagation of economically important woody ornamentals. Inadequate environmental and hormonal conditions can lead to the production of an insufficient or modest number of ARs in stem cutting, with a consequent decrease in quality. The aim of this research was to optimize wild sage and glossy abelia autumn stem cutting propagation protocols, using image analysis to assess the effects of different IBA concentrations and cultivars on AR quality. For both taxa, the treatments were: four IBA concentrations: 0, 1250, 2500 and 5000 mg L−1 and two cultivars: ‘Little Lucky’ (cv1) and ‘Yellow’ (cv2) from Lantana, and ‘Canyon Creek’ (cv1) and ‘Eduard Goucher’ (cv2) from Abelia. Results show that IBA application is not needed to enhance rooting ability; however, IBA concentration is an important factor determining the best overall AR quality in both taxa. In wild sage applying 5000 mg L−1 IBA improved AR quality in ‘Little Lucky’, increasing the root number, total length, surface area and number of forks and crossings, but decreased quality in ‘Yellow’. In glossy abelia ‘Edouard Goucher’, 5000 mg L−1 IBA increased the root number, but 1250 mg L−1 IBA improved AR quality; ‘Canyon Creek’ did not perform as well as cv2 at these concentrations. This study confirms that sensitivity to IBA dosage varies among species and their cultivars. Findings may help the commercial nursery industry produce higher quality cuttings. Full article
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