Abstract

Cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae which can be propagated by several techniques. Graftingis a usual method playing major role in cactus propagation. Grafting contains the uniting of two living plant parts so that they grow as a single plant. This experiment screened different combinations of rootstock-scion in cactus.The experiment was set up with a factorial based on completely randomized design with four replications. Treatments were time of grafting at two levels (spring and autumn), rootstocks at five levels (Cereus argentinensis, Borzicactus samaipatanus, Cleistocactus candelilla, Harrisia pomanensis and Eriocereus jusbertii) and scions at fives levels (Gymnocalycium, Echinocereus, Mammillaria, Rebutia and Coryphantha). Factors studied were plant fresh and dry weight and grafting quality. Results showed that fresh and dry weight of cacti grafted in the autumn was significantly affected by different rootstocks and scions. The maximum fresh weight in plants grafted in the spring was obtained for Gymnocalycium and Coryphantha, while the maximum dry weight was observed at Coryphantha. The maximum dry weight in plants grafted in the spring was related to Harrisia pomanensis, while the minimum dry weight was obtained for Borzicactus samaipatanus and Cleistocactus candelilla. No significant difference was found among the treatments in terms of grafting quality in the spring and autumn. Overall, comparison between the results obtained in the spring and autumn showed that grafting quality was different under various combinations of rootstocks and scions.