Journal of Advances in Biology & Biotechnology

Plant growth regulators can influence corm sprouting and vegetative development in gladiolus, but cultivar- and dose-specific responses require local evaluation. A field experiment was conducted during 2024–2025 at the Horticulture Farm of the Department of Horticulture to assess the effects of gibberellic acid (GA₃), 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA), indole-3-butyric acid (IBA), and Cycocel (CCC) on Gladiolus grandiflorus L. var. Pusa Shanti. The experiment was laid out in a randomised block design at a spacing of 30 × 20 cm, with twenty-one corms per plot. Thirteen treatments comprised a control; GA₃, NAA, and IBA at 100, 150, and 200 ppm; and CCC at 600, 650, and 700 ppm. Days to corm sprouting, plant height, number of leaves per plant, and leaf area were evaluated. Treatment T3 (GA₃ at 150 ppm) produced the earliest corm sprouting (8.50 days), greatest plant height (124.90 cm), highest number of leaves per plant (8.75), and largest leaf area (932.44 cm²). GA₃ at 200 ppm also performed favourably but did not exceed GA₃ at 150 ppm for the measured traits. CCC treatments delayed sprouting and reduced plant height relative to the control, with CCC at 700 ppm recording 13.00 days to sprouting and a plant height of 98.75 cm. Under the tested conditions, GA₃ at 150 ppm was the best-performing treatment for the vegetative growth of Pusa Shanti.