Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
  • A01N—PRESERVATION OF BODIES OF HUMANS OR ANIMALS OR PLANTS OR PARTS THEREOF; BIOCIDES, e.g. AS DISINFECTANTS, AS PESTICIDES OR AS HERBICIDES; PEST REPELLANTS OR ATTRACTANTS; PLANT GROWTH REGULATORS
  • A01N27/00—Biocides, pest repellants or attractants, or plant growth regulators containing hydrocarbons

Definitions

• This invention relates to plant growth regulators.
• Plant Growth Regulators are well known in the field of agricultural chemicals but the term is often loosely applied to include fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides and the like plant food and plant protectors, frequently essential to assist healthy plant growth.
• the present invention is not concerned with such loosely termed materials and in this specification the term "Plant Growth Regulator” is used to define materials which regulate by delaying or accelerating the germinat ion of the seed or the growth of the plant .
• Plant growth regulators are well known in the art and generally fall into three quite different and distinct groups. (i) Materials for preventing or delaying germination of the seed.
• Plant growth regulators for preventing or delaying the germination of seed are used primarily to store seed in good order for consumption or processing but most such materials which delay sprouting have an adverse effect on plants grown from the treated seed. Such "adverse affects" vary from delayed germination of the seed after planting to more serious effects and, by way of example, there are a number of materials which can be used to delay the sprouting of stored potatoes but in most countries such materials are banned for use on potatoes intended for seed.
• Plant growth regulators for assisting the germination of seed generally comprise liquids or gels into which the roots of the germinating seed can grow but most such prior art plant growth regulators require the seed to be retained in the root growth material until a good root growth has been achieved, when the seed must be transplanted by hand to avoid damage to the root system. This method for seed propagation is expensive and is rarely used on plants other then relatively expensive ornamentals.
• the present invention seeks to provide a plant growth regulator which can be formulated in various ways for application to seed; tubers and rizomes, hereinafter referred to as seeds, and to growing plants.
• a plant growth regulator comprising di- isopropyl-naphthalene.
• Di-isopropyl-naphthalenes are well known in the art and are used primarily as a solvent for duplicating inks. What has proved surprising is that this material, which from investigations todate has not been found in plant tissue, has most advantageous plant growth regulating properties.
• the plant growth regulator proposed by the invention comprises an isomeric mixture of di- isopropyl-naphthalenes.
• the di-isopropyl-naphthalene is applied to an inert solids carrier, which may comprise a solids dust or granules.
• an inert solids carrier which may comprise a solids dust or granules.
• di-isopropyl-naphthalene is combined with an emulsifying agent, such as phosphate ester.
• the di-isopropyl-naphthalene is combined with a diluent, preferably an inert viscous material such as polyethylene glycol.
• a diluent preferably an inert viscous material such as polyethylene glycol.
• the present invention also envisages a method for treating the seed or plants comprising the steps of applying to the seed, the plant or the growing medium for the seed or plant a di-isopropyl-napthalene or an isomeric mixture of di-isopropyl-naphthalenes.
• the di-isopropyl-naphthalene is applied to inert granular carriers which are mixed with the seed or distributed onto the growing medium for the seed or the growing plant.
• the di-isopropyl-naphthalene is mixed with an emulsifying agent, is diluted with an inert diluent, and is applied to the seed by a dipping process,or by a spraying process such as by the use of a so-called ultra low volume applicator, or by a thermal or vapour fogging process.
• the di-isopropyl-naphthalene, mixed with an emulsifying agent and diluted with an inert diluent is applied to the plants by a spraying process.
• the present invention thus identifies a single material which may be formulated in various ways and applied to seeds or growing plants or to the growing medium and the said regulator may be applied by any of the known methods for application, including soaking, liquid spray, fogging, dust, or by application to granules mixed with the seed or applied to the growing iaedium in which the plant is growing.
• the dosage rate for the plant growing regulator lies between 5 and 200 parts per million, more preferably between 10 to 50 parts per million.
• An emulsifiable concentrate made up as in Example 1 was diluted with polyethylene glycol to give a 1% wt./vol. dispersion of di-isopropyl-naphthalene.
• 10 gms. of granules were applied to 10 kg. of potatoes of the cultivator Record on a chitting tray. Five such trays were prepared and stored with five trays of untreated potatoes.
• An emulsifiable concentrate produced as in Example 1 was diluted with water to give a dispersion containing 500 mg. per litre of the active ingredient D.I.P.N.
• the liquid was then applied to 12 cucumber seedlings to "run-off" taking care not to allow the spray liquid to contact the growing medium, thereby to ensure that the take-up by the plant was restricted to the foliage.
• An emulsifiable concentrate made up as in Example 1 was diluted with 200 mis. of water and applied to 100 kgs. of seed potatoes of the cultivar Pentland Squire, using an ultra low volume spray mounted on a roller table, giving a concentration of 2.5% wt/vol. of di-isopropyl- naphthalene or 50 parts per million.
• the treated tubers and a similar quantity of untreated potatoes were stored in an insulated building maintained at 10 degrees C ⁇ 2 degrees.
• the treated potatoes, with a 1 tonne box of untreated potatoes were then placed in a frost free building maintained at 5 degrees C ⁇ 1 degree for 150 days, after which time the boxes were taken from store and the potatoes were graded. At that time no sprout growth had occured on the treated potatoes and the tubers were sound and firm.
• the untreated potatoes had grown sprouts in the order of 25% to 75 mm.
• 150 kgs. of treated potatoes and 150 kgs. of untreated potatoes lying within the size range 25 mm. to 50 mm. were placed in potato chitting trays and stacked in an illuminated and ventilated store for a further 30 days prior to planting.
• Fresh harvested potatoes of the cultivar Pentland Squire were treated with 10 % wt/wt. D.I.P.N. granules at the rate of 1 kg. per tonne and stored in 1 tonne boxes.
• a comparative treatment of 10% wt/wt T.C.N.B. granules were applied to a number of boxes. Several untreated boxed were included as controls.
• Di-isopropyl-naphthalene was formulated as a 2% wt/wt dust and an emulsifiable concentrate containing 95% wt/vol active ingredient.
• the carrier used was fine diatomaceous earth.
• Example 1 above clearly shows that pea seeds treated with the plant growth regulator before planting showed a substantial increase in root length and root numbers and thereby a substantial increase in plant growth, relative to the untreated seed and after the treatment the seeds were capable of being sown by conventional planting apparatus.
• Example 2 clearly show that the tubers, spray Example 2 clearly show that the tubers, spray treated with the plant growth regulator, experience a delay in sprout growth but showed a significant increase in sprout number and the sprout growths were sturdy. The treatment of the stored seed did not adversely affect the plant potential once the potatoes germinated.
• Example 3 shows that the plant growth regulator when applied directly to granules and dispersed in a volume of potatoes clearly affected all the potatoes giving a substantial reduction in mean sprout length of the treated potatoes.
• Example 4 clearly shows the advantages of applying the plant growth regulator to the foliage of growing plants, in the example cucumbers, as is evident from the increase in root number, root length and leaf growth relative to the controls.
• Example 5 shows the effect of the di-isopropyl-naphalene/emulsifier/water combination sprayed on potatoes prior to planting and illustrates the very substantial reduction in time of emergence of the treated potatoes.
• the treated potatoes showed a substantial increase in stems, normally indicative of an increase in tuber numbers, and this was illustrated by the actual increase in tubers. It should also be observed that the number of usable tubers produced by the treated seed increased, as did the overall yield of treated seed.
• Example 6 clearly shows the dual identity nature of the di-isopopropyl-naphthalenes.
• Example 7 is a further example illustrating the advantages of applying the plant growth regulator to the foliage of plants, in this example cucumbers.
• Example 8 showed the di-isopropyl-naphthalene to be more efficient than T.C.N.B. as a sprout growth inhibitor and clearly showed a reduced loss of weight of the treated tubers.
• Example 9 shows that the di-isopropyl-naphthalene proved to be effective when applied to an inert dust carrier. Whilst the present invention has been described by way of somewhat restricted examples such examples clearly show the beneficial effects of the plant growth regulator proposed by the present invention in the storage phase and the growing phase and, in disclosing trial results on three different groups of plant species, clearly shows the versatility of the di-isopropyl-naphthalenes on plant life forms in general.

Landscapes

• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Agronomy & Crop Science (AREA)
• Pest Control & Pesticides (AREA)
• Plant Pathology (AREA)
• Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Dentistry (AREA)
• General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Wood Science & Technology (AREA)
• Zoology (AREA)
• Environmental Sciences (AREA)
• Agricultural Chemicals And Associated Chemicals (AREA)
• Cultivation Of Plants (AREA)
• Pretreatment Of Seeds And Plants (AREA)

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• 1987
  • 1987-04-29 GB GB878710177A patent/GB8710177D0/en active Pending
• 1988
  • 1988-04-22 EP EP19880903319 patent/EP0379485A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 1988-04-22 JP JP50350788A patent/JPH03503279A/ja active Pending
  • 1988-04-22 WO PCT/GB1988/000306 patent/WO1988008249A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 1988-04-22 AU AU16220/88A patent/AU1622088A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1988-04-29 CN CN198888103904A patent/CN88103904A/zh active Pending
  • 1988-04-29 ES ES8801328A patent/ES2012831A6/es not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1988-04-29 DD DD31524988A patent/DD281538A5/de not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1988-05-02 PT PT8738688A patent/PT87386A/pt not_active Application Discontinuation

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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