AIR LAYERING FOR CLONAL PROPAGATION OF PROSOPIS CHILENSIS AND OTHER WOODY DESERT LEGUMES
Woody legumes used for landscape plants in the desert southwest are extremely variable when propagated from seed. Three Prosopis chilensis trees were air layered in early April, 1989. Stems diameters of 0,5 and 1.0 cm and IBA levels of 5,000 and 15,000 ppm IBA were compared. Except when mechanical damage occurred during the wounding stage or from wind, 100% of the layers at both 5,000 and 15,000 ppm IBA rooted. The 0.5 cm branches were more susceptible to mechanical damage from wounding than the 1.0 cm branches.A second study begun in mid-August, 1989, compared 0 and 5,000 ppm IBA on the same three genotypes. After eight weeks, IBA treated layers had 83% and untreated layers only 13% rooting. Layers with IBA had thicker and more numerous roots.Air layers of Cercidium, Parkinsonia, and other species of Prosopis were also successfully rooted.