Effect of different polybag size on growth and development of bougainvillea (Bougainvillea spp.)

Keywords: Bougainvillea, polybag size, varieties, hardwood, propagation, konkan

1. Introduction

India is home to a diverse range of agroclimatic zones that are suitable for growing a wide range of floricultural crops. The Indian floriculture industry includes flowers and ornamental plants cultivated in both open fields and protected conditions. Bougainvillea is an ornamental perennial shrub belonging to the family Nyctaginaceae and is indigenous to South America's arid tropical regions. It is a multipurpose plant that thrives in tropical and subtropical environments and was first brought to India from Europe around 1860. The crop requires comparatively low water and maintenance for vegetative growth and flowering.

Bougainvillea is a very attractive and an important ornamental flowering shrub grown for its brightly coloured bracts over a wide range of climate across the world. It is an evergreen shrubby vine of tropical and sub-tropical regions. India is an important centre of bougainvillea diversity, with approximately 50% of the current cultivars having been developed within the country (Janakiram et al., 2013) ^[1].

Bougainvillea, known as the “Glory of Gardens”, is valued for its colourful papery bracts in shades such as magenta, white, red and yellow. The plants are widely used as hedges, topiary, climbers and for covering walls and trellises. In addition to its ornamental value, bougainvillea has been reported for its tolerance to particulate pollution (Kulshreshtha et al., 2009) ^[2].

Although considerable research has been conducted on propagation techniques, rooting hormones, nutrient management, and growth regulators in bougainvillea, limited scientific information is available on the influence of polybag size on the growth and development of different bougainvillea varieties under Konkan conditions. The present investigation was therefore undertaken to evaluate the response of six bougainvillea varieties to different polybag sizes.

2. Material and Methods

The experiment entitled “Effect of different polybag size on growth and development of bougainvillea (Bougainvillea spp.)” was conducted during the year 2025-26 at College of Horticulture, Dapoli, Dist. Ratnagiri, Maharashtra. The experiment was laid out in Factorial Randomized Block Design (FRBD) with two factors viz. polybag size (P₁: 6” × 4”, P₂: 6” × 8”, and P₃: 9” × 11”) and varieties (V₁: Pink Beauty, V₂: Singapore Red, V₃: Mahara, V₄: Gopal, V₅: Chitra and V₆: M.P.S.) with three replications and eighteen treatment combinations.

The experimental material consisted of hardwood cuttings. Cuttings of 15 to 17 cm length were prepared by making a slant cut at the basal node and a flat cut at the top. The cuttings were kept in moist gunny bags after detachment from parent plants to prevent dehydration. Leaves were removed while retaining the thorns and 2-3 nodes were maintained on each cutting. Healthy cuttings were planted in polybags containing the medium. Small holes were made in the pre-watered medium before planting to facilitate easy insertion and minimize damage.

The basal portion of each cutting, approximately 2 cm long and including the last node, was dipped in freshly prepared IBA solution (1000 ppm) for 60 seconds before planting. Irrigation was carried out on alternate days using a rose can. Humic acid at 2.5 ml/L was applied as drench 15 days after planting. Nutrient drenching with 19:19:19 at 5 g/L was applied one month after planting and subsequently at 30-day intervals.

Hand weeding was performed as necessary to control weed growth in the polybags. Five plants were selected thoroughly and tagged in each replication in all treatments for the purpose of recording observations. The mean value of the five selected plants in each treatment of three replications was taken to represent a particular character. The generated data was subjected to statistical analysis methods as suggested by Panse et al. (1995) ^[3].

The study examined the interaction effects of both factors, focusing on sprouting percentage, vegetative parameters, rooting parameters and survival rates, which were recorded at the end of the experiment.

3. Results and Discussion

The results indicated that polybag size influenced sprouting, survival and vegetative growth of bougainvillea. The treatment means for the final vegetative observations are presented in Table 1, while sprouting and survival percentages are presented in Table 2.

3.1 Vegetative parameters

3.1.1 Plant height (cm)

At 180 days after planting (DAP), the highest plant height among the treatment combinations was recorded in P₃V₂ (75.22 cm), while the lowest was recorded in P₁V₄ (59.94 cm). The main effect of polybag size showed that P₃ recorded the highest mean plant height 70.51 cm, followed by P₂ (68.78 cm) and P₁ (64.17 cm). Among the varieties, V₂ (Singapore Red) recorded the highest mean plant height 72.59 cm, whereas V₄ (Gopal) recorded the lowest 64.14 cm. The interaction between polybag size and variety was significant at the final observation. The greater rooting volume provided by the larger polybag may have favoured better root development and consequently greater vegetative growth. Sood et al. (2019) ^[4] reported significant effects of container size and growing medium on seedling growth in Oroxylum indicum, while Verma et al., (2018) ^[5] reported significant effects involving polybag size in nursery seedlings.

3.1.2 Stem girth (mm)

At 180 DAP, the highest stem girth 23.99 mm was recorded in P₃V₂, whereas the lowest 16.61 mm was recorded in P₁V₄. The mean stem girth increased with polybag size, with P₃ recording 21.34 mm, followed by P₂ (20.34 mm) and P₁ (18.74 mm). Among the varieties, V₂ recorded the highest mean stem girth (22.48 mm), whereas V₄ recorded the lowest (17.71 mm). The interaction effect was significant. The increase in rooting volume under larger polybags may have supported greater stem thickening and overall vegetative growth. Sood et al. (2019) ^[4] reported container-related effects on collar diameter in Oroxylum indicum, while Verma et al. (2018) ^[5] reported significant effects of nursery container size on seedling growth and root development.

3.1.3 Shoot length

The maximum shoot length 68.21 cm was recorded in P₃V₂, whereas the minimum shoot length 22.74 cm was observed in P₁V₁. The observed range was 22.74–68.21 cm. The marked superiority of P₃V₂ at the later stages suggests that Singapore Red was able to utilize the greater rooting space of the 9 × 11 inch polybag more effectively, resulting in vigorous shoot elongation. Ferdousee et al. (2011) ^[6] reported better shoot length and overall seedling growth in larger polybags in Leucaena leucocephala and Gliricidia sepium, with the 23 × 15 cm polybag giving the best overall performance. Gupta et al. (2018) ^[7] similarly observed greater shoot growth of litchi air layers in large polybags. Pawar et al. (2025) ^[8], support the present observation that vigorous genetic material can respond strongly when adequate root-zone space is available.

3.1.4 Number of leaves

At the final observation, the largest polybag size (P₃) produced the greatest mean number of leaves. The maximum number of leaves (124.04) was recorded by the treatment combination P₃V₁ (P₃: 9 × 11 inch, V₁: Pink beauty). The minimum number of leaves (47.46) was observed in P₁V₅ (P₁: 6 × 4 inch, V₅: Chitra) 180 days after planting. The interaction effect was significant. The present P₃V₁ response therefore indicates that both container volume and varietal growth habit contributed to leaf production.

The higher leaf production under P₃ may be associated with greater rooting volume and better vegetative growth. Polybag size, variety and their interaction showed significant effects on leaf production at the final observation. The importance of treatment combinations for leaf production has also been reported by Gupta et al. (2018) ^[7], who observed the highest number of leaves in the best large-polybag × growing-medium treatment in litchi. Sood et al. (2019) ^[4] similarly reported significant interaction effects on leaf production in Oroxylum indicum.

3.1.5 Leaf area (cm²)

The highest leaf area 66.73 cm² was recorded in the combination P₃V₂, whereas the lowest 15.23 cm² was recorded in P₁V₁. The significant P × V interaction indicates that the response of varieties to polybag size was not uniform. The highest value in P₃V₂ demonstrates that Singapore Red benefited considerably from the larger growing space. In contrast, the lowest value in P₁V₁ indicates that the combination of a smaller polybag and a comparatively poor-performing variety restricted leaf development. Debaje et al. (2023) ^[9] recorded significant differences in leaf area of kokum seedlings grown in different nursery media and reported a maximum leaf area of 49.47 cm² at the graftable stage. Gupta et al. (2018) ^[7] similarly observed improved vegetative growth in larger polybags. These findings support the present increase in leaf area with better root-zone conditions.

3.2 Sprouting and survival percentage

3.2.1 Sprouting percentage

The interaction effect (P × V) was also found to be significant. The highest sprouting percentage 92.00% was recorded in the treatment combination P₂V₂, followed by P₂V₆ (90.00%) and the lowest sprouting percentage 49.34% was observed in P₁V₁. This indicates that the combination of a medium polybag size with the variety V₂ provided favourable conditions for successful sprouting. Pawar et al. (2025) ^[8] reported a strong variety × cutting-length response in bougainvillea, with Singapore Red showing 100% sprouting in both cutting-length treatments. Borkar (2024) ^[10] similarly found that the performance of bougainvillea depended on the combination of variety and propagation method. These studies support the present result that the best performance was obtained from a particular combination rather than from either factor alone.

3.2.2 Survival percentage

The interaction effect (P × V) was statistically significant, indicating that the response of individual varieties to container volume was not uniform. Variety V₂ maintained consistently high survival rates across all bag sizes, peaking at 72.00% under the P₂ treatment. In contrast, variety V₁ recorded lowest survival percentage under P₁, dropping to its lowest survival rate of 40.50 %. Gupta et al. (2018) ^[7] reported 95.5% survival of litchi air layers in a large polybag treatment, while smaller or alternative containers showed lower establishment under their conditions. Verma et al. (2018) ^[5] also found that polybag size significantly affected seedling growth and root development. These findings are consistent with the present observation that container size can influence plant establishment.

4. Conclusion

The present investigation entitled "Effect of different polybag sizes on growth and development of bougainvillea (Bougainvillea spp.)" revealed that polybag size significantly influences vegetative growth, sprouting and survival percentage of various bougainvillea varieties.

The polybag size 9 × 11 inch recorded the highest values for the measured vegetative parameters at 180 DAP. It recorded the highest mean plant height, stem girth, shoot length number of leaves and leaf area. Among the varieties, Singapore Red recorded the highest mean plant height, stem girth, shoot length and leaf area while Pink Beauty recorded the highest mean number of leaves, indicating varietal differences in leaf production and branching behavior. The interaction 9 × 11 inch × Singapore Red was the most promising combination for vigorous plant development. It recorded the maximum plant height, stem girth, shoot length and leaf area while 9 × 11 inch × Pink Beauty recorded the maximum number of leaves. For sprouting and survival, 6 × 8 inch × Singapore Red recorded 92.00 and 72.00 % respectively. However, the results reported from the present investigation are suggestive and need to be studied further for appropriate recommendations.

5. Acknowledgement

We express our sincere thanks to Department of Floriculture and Landscaping, College of Horticulture, Dr. Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, Dapoli- 415712, Dist: Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, India, for providing necessary facilities and valuable guidance during investigation.

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