Correlative Inhibition of Lateral Bud Growth in Phaseolus vulgaris L. Effect of Application of Indol-3yl-Acetic Acid to Decapitated Plants

In view of the variation in the ability of indol-3yl-aceticacid (IAA) to prevent lateral bud growth on decapitated plantsvarious factors which might influence the response have beeninvestigated in Phaseolus vulgaris L. The effectiveness of IAAapplied in lanolin varied from experiment to experiment. Factorsthat altered the response included the time of year, the concentrationand quantity of IAA, the age of the plant, the type of lanolinand the region of application. In many instances IAA, at a concentrationbelieved to mimic the auxin relations of the intact plant, cancompletely replace the main shoot with respect to the correlativeinhibition of lateral bud growth. The evidence for the involvementof IAA as the primary determinant in apical dominance in P.vulgaris is summarized.