Most people know that our body contains hormones - regulatory substances. Some hormones are responsible for growth processes, others for metabolism, and others for the processes of reproduction of the body. They are found not only in humans and animals, but also in plants. They are called phytohormones. Just like hormones in animals, phytohormones regulate all vital processes in the plant organism. Now scientists have isolated a large number of phytohormones. These are auxins, cytokinins, gibberellins, etc. Auxins, for example, regulate root formation and the distribution of various substances in a plant, gibberellins - the processes of flowering and fruiting, cytokinins affect the growth of buds and shoots.
The study of the structure of phytohormone molecules and their effect on plants made it possible to create a new large group of synthetic substances - analogues of plant hormones.
They are called stimulants or regulators.
The very first synthetic phytohormone that was obtained in laboratory conditions - “Heteroauxin " or indoleacetic acid. When treated with this drug, a large amount of the hormone auxin is formed in the plant, which accelerates root formation many times over. When the seeds are treated with heteroauxin, their germination increases and germination is accelerated. It is good to use it for rooting cuttings, for quick restoration of the root system of seedlings after transplanting them into the ground. The same properties are possessed by "Kornevin" (indolylbutyric acid), but its effect on plants is milder and more prolonged. Both stimulants are applied under the root in the form of an aqueous solution. This is not always convenient.
There are other substances that stimulate root formation, but unlike the mentioned stimulants, they can be applied through the leaves with foliar feeding. One of them is a completely new drug - "Etamon "... It comes in the form of an aqueous solution. Root formation is stimulated by improving the absorption of minerals by the plant at the cellular level. The best effect of using Etamon is achieved when it is applied together with a complete mineral fertilizer with foliar feeding of plants. It works equally well both outdoors and indoors.
Another, also relatively new drug, affecting the rooting processes –"Zircon"... It not only accelerates root formation, but also has fungicidal activity - treatment with Zircon increases the resistance of plants to fungal infections. Moreover, Etamon and Zircon, when used together with Heteroauxin or Kornevin, enhance the effect of these stimulants.
There is a stimulant that helps the plant to get out of stress faster after transplanting. This is well-known "Epin"... It can be classified as an adaptogen.
If you want to speed up flowering and get seeds faster, you can use gibberellic acid salts. To accelerate flowering, plants are treated with gibberellins before budding, and to accelerate fruit formation - after the formation of ovaries. On sale they can be found in the form of drugs. "Ovary" or "Bud".
There are some general rules for using stimulants. It must be remembered that phytohormones are formed in plants in negligible amounts, therefore, when using stimulants, it is very important to follow the instructions for their use. Excess doses of growth regulators when processing plants can have the opposite effect - inhibition rather than acceleration of the growth of a plant or its organs.
A simplified scheme for the use of stimulants can be proposed.
The process of growing seedlings begins with sowing seeds:
- before sowing, soak the seeds in a solution of Heteroauxin or Kornevin for 5-8 hours.
Seedlings will appear faster and more amicably.
Shoots appeared:
- spray them twice a month with Epin, or Zircon, or Etamon. With these stimulants, you will get stronger seedlings with a well-developed root system.
Planting seedlings in the ground:
- spill the root ball with a solution of "Kornevin" or "Heteroauxin" - this will speed up rooting. Spray the planted seedlings twice a month with solutions of Zircon or Etamon. Your plants will take root faster and adapt to new conditions, they will more easily endure spring frosts, they will bloom faster, the flowers will be larger and brighter.
Flowering has begun and you need to get the seeds:
- at the end of flowering, treat them with the preparation "Ovyaz" - get larger seeds and in a shorter time. If the seeds in our zone do not have time to ripen, then there is a chance that this stimulant will help you. However, if you process the plants at the beginning of flowering, you will get more "barren flowers" - non-similar seeds.
If you need to quickly and in a short time get a large number of seedlings of plants such as pelargonium, fuchsia, balsam, etc .:
- cut stem cuttings from the shoots of an adult plant, soak them in a solution of "Heteroauxin" or "Kornevin" for 10 - 12 hours. Plant them in a greenhouse and spray every 10 - 12 days with a solution of "Etamon" or "Zircon".
From each cut, you will get a fully formed plant almost twice as fast as without stimulant treatment.
The most readily available plant stimulants are listed here. But besides them, there are many other growth regulators. These are succinic acid, "Silk", salts of humic acids and others.
