Cytokinin paste for orchids: how to use, instructions

Properties and composition

The drug contains a hormone of plant origin and lanolin. The active ingredient inhibits the development of the main stem and stimulates the growth of peduncles and side shoots.

With the help of cytokinin paste, they increase the splendor of the bush, stimulate and prolong flowering. More than three kidneys at a time are not processed. After the appearance of side shoots, the procedure is repeated if necessary.

You need to use cytokinin paste for indoor plants very carefully. Increasing the dosage leads to uncontrolled growth. Instead of an escape, a formation resembling a tumor develops.

Negative factors that slow down or cancel the effect

Hormonal paste is not an absolute way to save a flower . Cytokinin paste should be stored in the refrigerator in a closed compartment and in a dark place, otherwise its positive qualities will disappear.

also used only on healthy bushes that are capable of growing an additional flower shoot or baby. More than 3 buds on one bush cannot be awakened at the same time, as this will deplete the main bush.

Cytokinin paste is used only on healthy plants.

Indications for use

The benefit of cytokinin paste for house plants is the possibility of restoring and increasing their decorative properties. The paste has the following effect on indoor crops.

Kidney stimulation. Depending on the dosage and place of application, the product stimulates the formation of shoots, flower stalks or children
Laying new buds. By applying the drug to scratches, bud formation is achieved.
Formation of fruits. If it is necessary to obtain fruits (to collect seeds), the flower buds are processed. The phytohormone increases the number of female flowers and promotes fruit set.
Reanimation of tubers and bulbs. Lubricate the eyes on the tubers or the bottom of the bulbs and plant them in light soil. Recovery and formation of young leaves takes from one to three weeks.
Reproduction. The drug is used for rooting and producing babies from cuttings of capricious plants. First of all, this concerns chimera violets. The drug is applied directly to living tissue in the incision area.

Young shoots cannot be stimulated. You should not experiment on sick or recently ill plants. Phytohormones are not used to restore roots. The recommended time to use the product is late winter or early spring.

Treating orchids with ointment

When breeding orchids, cytokinin paste is used to propagate perennials by removing babies from dormant buds or forming new flowering shoots.

The procedure for processing phalaenopsis is best carried out in late winter - early spring. At this time, it awakens from hibernation, and a hormonal phytomixture will help activate the process.

Awakening the kidneys

Experts recommend using cytokine paste on non-flowering orchids to awaken dormant buds as follows:

Inspection of the plant. The key condition for epiphyte propagation is the presence of a peduncle. The shoot must be carefully examined and the bud that will be processed must be selected. Professional flower growers recommend using the lowest or, conversely, the upper bud to achieve maximum results.
Flower processing. From the selected ovary you need to remove the scales covering it. For this purpose, use a sharp object - a knife, a game, a scalpel, a toothpick. The dry blade should be trimmed with the utmost care so as not to damage the bud or flowering shoot. To ensure maximum access, it is worth using tweezers: with its help you can move away the edges of the scales without causing harm to the branch.
Applying paste. After removing the scale, a dense light green point will open on the stem - a dormant bud. A ball of cytokinin mass, about 1.5-2 mm in size, is applied to it. To do this carefully, you should use a toothpick.
Distribution of paste. The applied hormonal product must be distributed evenly over the entire surface of the ovary.

After carrying out the described procedures, the orchid is given resting conditions. After 7-10 days, you can notice a result on the treated area, which depends on the amount of phytomaterial consumed:

if 1.5 mm of the mixture was applied, a new flowering shoot will form;
when applying 2-2.5 mm of the drug, you can get a shoot that will soon become an independent plant.

Be careful! When applying cytokinin paste to an orchid, it is necessary to avoid getting it on the leaves or roots of a flowering perennial - this can cause it to wilt.

Formation of a new kidney

In addition to awakening existing ovaries, you can use cytokinin paste to propagate orchids by laying additional buds. This happens as follows:

a small incision is made with a needle at the intended location of the branch;
a small ball of cytokinin mixture, no larger than 1.4 mm in size, is applied to the treated area of the peduncle;
The ointment is evenly distributed over the scratch area.

After 10-14 days, a stepson or peduncle will emerge in the area of the shoot with the ointment applied. The duration of obtaining results depends on the type of orchid and the conditions for caring for it.

Features of applying paste

In order for a cream with cytokinin to be beneficial, it is advisable to adhere to several rules for applying it to an orchid:

You should not simultaneously process more than three dormant primordia on one phalaenopsis. This is justified by the capabilities of a perennial crop and the degree of development of its root system. When a large number of new shoots are formed, the flower will not be able to provide them with the complex of nutrients necessary for full development.
Using an excessive amount of the drug can lead to one inactive bud producing several flowering shoots. It will not be possible to preserve them in full, so it is necessary to determine the strongest sprout and remove the rest.
The needle used to remove scales or scratch the stem must be disinfected - this reduces the risk of infection of the epiphytic perennial with pathogenic organisms.
During the growth of new shoots, it is necessary to provide additional feeding to the plant, the purpose of which is to enrich the orchid with nutrients. To determine the type of fertilizer required, you should pay attention to the shape of the shoots: when the peduncle grows, the plant needs potassium-phosphorus fertilizing, and when children form, a nitrogen supplement.

Contraindications for use

There are situations in which the use of a cytokinin composition is contraindicated, since it can lead to a deterioration in the condition of phalaenopsis or another type of epiphyte. Thus, experts do not recommend using a hormonal drug in the following cases:

When resuscitating orchids damaged as a result of improper care. Medicine aimed at the growth of new shoots can completely deplete the diseased plant.
If there are pests on orchids. In this case, it is impossible to obtain a healthy young generation; in addition, an adult may die, wasting energy on reproduction.
On young organisms and shoots. Children with insufficiently strengthened root systems may react to the biological product by yellowing and dropping leaves.

Conditions of storage and use

To preserve the properties of cytokinin paste for a long time, you should adhere to the following rules:

the hormonal drug must be stored in the refrigerator;
before applying to the plant, the ointment must reach room temperature, for which it is kept indoors for two hours;
Do not leave the mixture near heating appliances;
When applying the product to a plant, you should use gloves; if it gets on the skin or mucous membranes, you must rinse them thoroughly using plenty of water;
Do not apply expired ointment to plants.

Substitutes

Flower growers often have difficulty purchasing paste. If you cannot find this particular phytohormone, you can replace the cytokinin paste with analogues. There are two drugs on the market with similar effects.

Keiki Grow Plus. Made in Holland. It is more expensive, but flower growers leave only positive reviews about it on the forums.
"Cytodef." Available in the form of a powder containing a synthetic analogue of the phytohormone. A solution for spraying is prepared from it. It has a completely different effect - the flowers become bright and large, the stems become strong and thick.

People sometimes ask on forums about watering indoor plants with cytokinin paste. The drug is intended for local application only. For watering and spraying, it is better to use Cytodef.

Self-cooking

To save money, you can make your own cytokinin paste. The drug contains only three substances.

6–BAP. Contains a high concentration of cytokinin. Sold in chemical stores.
Dehydrated lanolin. Can be found in pharmacies that fill prescriptions. Lanolin is often used as a base for ointments.
Alcohol. It cannot be replaced with vodka or other alcoholic drinks. Only medical alcohol is suitable.

Kidney selection. Experienced gardeners recommend treating the lower bud of the peduncle.

Release of the kidney. The dormant bud is covered with protective scales. It is carefully removed using a scalpel.
Adding the paste. Dip the needle in alcohol and make several scratches on the kidney. A small amount of phytohormone is applied to them.

Final processing. The remaining product is evenly distributed over the surface. In order for the homemade paste to have the same properties as the branded product, follow four cooking rules.

Combine the ingredients. Mix approximately 1 g of 6-BAP with a few drops of alcohol.
Prepare lanolin. Heat it in a water bath with frequent stirring. When the first signs of boiling appear, remove from heat.
Mix. The product should stand for two to three days without a lid for the alcohol to completely evaporate.
Prepare a container. Transfer the finished paste into a sterile, airtight jar.

If the drug is stored in a warm place or exposed to light, it will lose its properties. The permissible storage temperature varies from –5 ˚С to +12 ˚С.

Mechanism of action of the paste

Each plant has dormant buds on the flower stalks or stems of the orchid. They cannot always wake up immediately after the winter. Cytokinin helps them wake up. You can process the flower in March or the first ten days of April. Ten days after use, the plant begins to actively bloom.

The active substance of cytokinin paste acts at the cellular level and improves metabolic processes by producing amino acids. The flowers grow quickly and begin to bloom profusely for a long time. The flowers themselves become more vibrant. This property of the drug is important for beginners who are just starting to grow delicate, capricious flowers.

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If the top of an orchid is broken, then processing the lower parts of the exotic will give rise to the growth of children and lateral peduncles. When treated with a hormonal agent, plant cells are renewed, and they age much more slowly. Untreated buds wither faster and there are fewer of them on the bush.

Advantages and disadvantages

The advantage of cytokinin paste is its effectiveness and rapid action. The drug acts on flower cells. It can be used regardless of the flower growing conditions. But at the same time, there is no information on the packaging about the use and concentration of the paste, so many gardeners harm the orchid. In rare cases, the flower may even die.

Cytokinin paste should not be used if the orchid flower is depleted. The plant will devote its remaining strength to the formation of children, shoots and roots will simply die. It cannot be used if the flower is affected by pests. The orchid will spend its reserves not on fighting insects, but on the process of active reproduction. The use of phytohormones in young plants can lead to yellowing of leaves and their shedding.

But the paste can be used in many cases when other means do not give the desired effect. She can save an indoor flower after long-term improper care or when kept in unfavorable conditions. The product is used when, after wintering, the orchid does not bloom or reproduce if it takes on an asymmetrical shape.

When used correctly, cytokinin paste will not cause any harm. It is safe for animals and humans, but treatment should be carried out while wearing rubber gloves. After the procedure, hands are washed thoroughly.

Pasta is prohibited in Europe and Russia. The instructions on the package do not contain exact dosage or recommendations for use of the product. If the concentration is exceeded, deformation of leaves and shoots and deformities are possible. When first applied, the orchid begins to grow quickly, but then slows down again until the next treatment. The drug, unfortunately, is addictive. It should not be used with other plant growth promoting agents. If the treatment is carried out incorrectly, the flower quickly weakens.

Independent preparation of the composition

Cytokinin paste cannot always be found. Some gardeners prepare it themselves. To do this, purchase lanolin in a pharmacy weighing from 100 to 200 grams. You will also need benzyladenine, which is included in medications for burns. You can buy it in departments with chemical reagents. Six grams of this substance are dissolved in a small volume of alcohol. The product does not dissolve in water.

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After this, 100 grams of lanolin are dissolved in a water bath. The substance is placed in a glass container. After the lanolin has dissolved, it is mixed with alcohol. The components are mixed and poured into a glass container. The pasta is not covered with a lid. The alcohol completely evaporates after a few days. The paste is ready to use. For long-term storage, the drug is closed with a lid.

Basic rules of use

The paste is easy to use - it is applied to a bud or small scratches on the stem. The product is taken literally at the tip of a sewing needle. The instructions for using cytokinin paste for indoor flowers do not contain any abstruse steps.

How to use:

The sewing needle is treated with alcohol or calcined over fire.
An amount of the drug the size of a grain of millet is hooked onto the tip. Free the kidney, or make a few scratches in the chosen place.
Distribute the paste evenly.

The first effect of using the paste will be visible within a couple of days. The bud will turn green and swell. In another week a sprout will appear.

Making pasta at home with your own hands

You will need:

Anhydrous (!) lanolin, 100 g. You can buy it in the prescription department of the pharmacy, in soap-making stores, in online stores.
6-BAP (benzyladenine or 6-benzylaminopurine) is the same “cytokinin”. Can be purchased at chemical stores.
6-benzylaminopurine is the main ingredient of cytokinin paste
Medical alcohol (pure ethyl alcohol 96% strength).

When preparing, keep in mind that cytokinin and lanolin do not dissolve in water.

Preparation:

Dissolve one gram of 6-BAP in a small amount of alcohol.
Place the vessel with lanolin in a water bath. Stirring constantly, bring to a liquid state.
Carefully pour the alcohol solution of cytokinin into the liquid lanolin. Mix thoroughly until smooth.
Place the jar of paste open in a dark place for a couple of days to allow the alcohol to ventilate.
It should be stored in the dark, in a cool place inaccessible to children and animals. You can use the paste for more than 3 years.

Cytokinin paste for orchids - benefits

Most often, cytokinin paste is used to bloom orchids or stimulate the formation of children. Orchids quickly respond to treatment with phytohormone. To prevent the plant from weakening, the drug is taken in microdoses. Stimulation is carried out in the first spring days.

Sometimes orchids do not produce children and are in no hurry to bloom. The use of reasonable doses of phytohormone corrects the situation. To stimulate, four actions are performed. During the forced formation of shoots, the orchid is provided with enhanced care. The flower is regularly fed and the conditions of its maintenance are monitored.

The use of cytokinin paste for indoor plants is not always justified. Its use is allowed only for mature, strong potted crops that have no peduncle or growth for a long time.

Orchid care during and after the procedure

appropriate care for the plant

The temperature in the room should not fall below 23 degrees Celsius;
There should be sufficient diffused sunlight;
The orchid must be fed with mineral supplements so that the mother plant is not depleted;
Regular watering is necessary.

It is necessary to follow these recommendations so as not to destroy the mother bush.

Contraindications for use

Of course, the stimulant gives a very good effect, but its use will not always be appropriate.

Therefore, in addition to the fact that you need to know how to treat an orchid with cytokinin paste, it is also important to understand when to do this and in what cases the product should not be used.

So it is prohibited to treat a flower with paste if:

He was recently transplanted.
There are pests.
The culture is infected with some kind of disease.
The orchid is very young. It is not recommended to use the product until five leaves appear. Usually 2-year-old plants are treated.
The orchid is still in the flowering phase or has just finished blooming.

In all these cases, the remedy will further aggravate the already poor condition of the plant. And this often leads to the death of the orchid. Therefore, it is so important to adhere to all recommendations when treating a flower with cytokinin paste.

Possible errors during use

Sometimes an orchid, after using cytokinin paste, produces several ugly shoots from one shoot. This means that the plant woke up on its own. During treatment, the owner simply could not recognize the signs of awakening due to his inexperience. In this case, there is only one way out - remove the shoot. Otherwise, the culture will begin to deplete.

There are a number of factors that slow down or cancel the effect of cytokinin paste. These include: low temperatures, drought, excessively high temperatures. To eliminate negative factors, the paste should be slightly heated before application. It should be at room temperature. It is better to moisten the greased area. Cytokinin is not washed away by water. If the air in the room is dry, it is useful to place a bowl of water next to the orchid pot. By providing the right conditions, the procedure will be successful and after a short time the grower will see a positive result.

Impact on the plant

Cytokinin paste, by its effect on the plant, awakens its lateral shoots, as a result of which, instead of one bush, you can get a large orchid bushconsisting of a mother plant and 2-4 basal children.

If all these rosettes are not planted, but left in one container, then when 3-5 bushes bloom, there will be a beautiful bouquet of beautiful exotic flowers. also help in the following cases:

if the flower was cultivated in a room with a low temperature;
will help with dried/flooded root systems.

Sometimes cytokinin paste for orchid growth is the last chance for a dying plant.

Awakening sleeping buds

Any orchid bush always has dormant buds, which can be located both on the peduncle and on the stem of the plant. Experienced gardeners advise using paste to wake up plants in the spring if they themselves are not able to wake up after winter. The main thing is that the orchid has a peduncle with waiting buds.

The best time to awaken is considered to be the end of winter and the first two months of spring .

Recommendations on how to smear an orchid to awaken waiting buds:

Carefully remove the covering scale from the kidney and bend it back using nails or tweezers;
Using a sterilized needle, carefully scratch the kidney, trying not to damage it completely;
Then the required amount of paste is applied to the damaged part.

Photo of using cytokinin paste.

The bud will begin to grow literally 10-14 days after applying the paste. If more than one peduncle develops from one bud, then it is necessary to leave one of the strongest ones, the rest are removed.

When stimulating the plant, only a completely healthy orchid is selected and at the moment of the formation of a flower arrow or babies, the flower is regularly fed so that the mother bush does not become depleted.

IMPORTANT! In order to obtain a peduncle, the amount of paste is applied with a ball no more than 2 mm. To do this, use a gypsy needle or toothpick. If you apply a pea of a larger diameter, then instead of a flower arrow you will get a growing baby.

Metabolism regulation

Cytokinin paste is able to regulate metabolism in plant cells by stimulating amino acids.

Amino acids awaken the buds, and the plant begins to increase its growth. In this case, flowering will last longer and the flowers will gain a more saturated shade of color.

This will be an important part if an inexperienced gardener, making mistakes, begins to destroy the orchid. After all, if the top of a plant is broken and the remaining bottom is treated with cytokinin ointment, then babies will begin to form on it.

Delays aging and decay processes

By using the paste, the flower goes through a renewal stage and this slows down its aging. At the same time the buds last longer than if they were on an unstimulated peduncle.

Activation of growth and flowering

After processing the waiting flower bud on the peduncle, a peduncle begins to form after 14 days . Many new buds are formed on it, which will have a long flowering period .

Formation of a peduncle after treatment with paste.