Using Plant Hormones Commercially Flashcards

All 7 cards in this deck

What is a selective weedkiller?

A weedkiller containing auxins that kills broad-leaved weeds but leaves narrow-leaved crops and grasses unharmed.

How do auxin-based weedkillers kill weeds?

They make the weeds grow too fast (uncontrolled growth), so the weeds overgrow and die, reducing competition for the crop.

What is rooting powder and which hormone does it contain?

A powder containing auxins, dipped onto cuttings so they grow roots and develop into new plants.

Give three commercial uses of gibberellins.

To make seeds germinate (end dormancy), to control fruit and flower formation, and to produce seedless fruit.

Which plant hormone is used commercially to ripen fruit?

Ethene.

Why do growers pick fruit unripe and treat it with ethene later?

Unripe fruit is firm, so it is damaged less during transport and storage; ethene then ripens it just before it is sold.

True or false? Seedless fruit is produced by spraying plants with ethene.

False. Seedless fruit is produced using gibberellins; ethene is used to ripen fruit.