EFFECT OF PLANT GROWTH REGULATORS ON REVERSAL OF REPRODUCTIVE CHARACTER IN SECHIUM EDULE (L.) LEADING TO CROP IMPROVEMENT

An experiment was conducted to study the effect of plant growth substances on reversal of reproductive character in Sechium edule L. Foliar spray of ethrel at 50, 100, 250, 500 and 1000 µg/ml was made to seedlings of S.edule. The spray of ethrel significantly increased female flowers over male which led to increase in fruit number. Number of female flowers gradually increased and ethrel at 250µg/ml was the optimal concentration recording 39.7 number of female flowers as against 13.2 at control. On the contrary the number of male flower at 250 µg/ml was 30.7 as against 15.5 at control. CCC was also applied at 50, 100, 250, 500 and 1000 µg/ml to S.edule (L.) The femaleness was increased and 250 µg/ml of CCC emerged as optimum concentration recording 26.5 number of female flower against 14.9 at control. At the respective concentration the number of male flower was 13.1 against 16.3 at control. Thus excessive vegetative growth in S.edule L was reduced by both ethrel and CCC. The experiment established reversal of male flower to female leading to increase in number of fruits.