Vegetative propagation of stevia (Stevia rebaudiana bertoni hemsl) using stem tip cuttings in different growing media

© 2017, Department of Science and Technology. All rights reserved. The study was intended to teach students the essence of recycling farm wastes to support the cultivation of valuable crops like stevia (Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni Hemsl). The study was undertaken to evaluate different combinations of growing media in the asexual propagation of stevia, specifically on the rooting and survival of stem tip cuttings, and to evaluate the best growing medium that can enhance survival and production. The different growing media combinations were recycled from the farm, namely: spent mushroom compost (M), chicken manure compost (Ck), fine sand (FS), and garden soil (GS). The earliest emergence of root initiation of cuttings (8.00 ± 1.73 to 8.67 ± 1.15 days) was recorded in T5 (1Ck:1FS v/v),T6 (3Ck + FS v/v) and T7 (1GS:3Ck v/v). The poor survival of T5 stevia was deemed attributable to the poor root initiation (22.23 ± 9.93) of cuttings. Longer roots were observed in cuttings grown in T5 and T6 (6.40 ± 0.26 to 6.40 ± 1.00). The highest number of shoots produced per cutting (7.27a ± 0.50) was recorded in T9 (3GS + 1Ck v/v), while T8 (1GS:1Ck v/v) produced the lowest number of shoots. Stevia cuttings grown in T3 (3GS:CMS (3:1 v/v) registered the highest mean survival rate (82.22 ± 38.95), and comparable to T1 (66.67 ± 5.80), T6 (65.53 ± 6.93), T8 (55.57 ± 16.43), and T9 (71.10 ± 6.96), all markedly higher relative to the control group (21.13 ± 5.10). Present findings point to survival of stevia being enriched in growing medium comprising GS, M and CK. In light of these findings, experimentation on the combination of animal manure compost, spent mushroom compost and garden soil, and studies on the quality of leaves produced including chemical analysis are highly recommended