ROOT RESTRICTION AND GROWTH MANIPULATION IN PEACH

The experiment was carried out to develop a model plant system to assess the effect of root restriction on vegetative growth. Micropropagated GF 677 peach-almond hybrid rootstocks were grown in pots with different volumes (1350 and 270 ml). Vegetative parameters studied (shoot elongation, number of leaves, leaf area, fresh and dry weight and relative growth rate) were affected by root restriction. IAA-oxidase activity present at collar tissue level was higher in plants cultivated in the smaller pots. Results show that the model plant system could be suitable to study shoot/root relationship and provide a rapid experimental turnover.