Assessment of substrate media among tissue culture derived plants of Anthurium andreanum cultivar Singapore Hybrid

An experiment was carried out to assess the influence of different substrates, their chemical reaction and nutrient status on growth of Anthurium andreanum cv. Singapore Hybrid particularly on important morphological characters. Among the four substrates evaluated in combination with varying levels of FYM, soil and sand, it was found that more number of suckers (6.1/plant) and early flower initiation (188.15 days after planting) were observed in the media of coffee cherry husk: FYM; soil and sand, in the ratio of 2:1:1:1, respectively. The best substrate media for enhanced suckering and early flowering possessed acidic pH of 5.2, highest P₂O₅ (163.27 Kg/acre), iron (Fe²⁺) content of 87 ppm and moderate level (27 ppm) of manganese (Mn.²⁺). The correlation studies exhibited significant positive association (r=0.75l) between number of suckers/plant and iron (Fe²⁺) content of the growing media. However, significant but negative (r=-0.817) association was recorded among the characters like number of suckers/plant and pH of the growing media. This study found coffee cherry husk as an efficient alternate substrate for anthurium cultivation.