Propagação vegetativa por estaquia caulinar de plantas medicinais

Abstract

One of the oldest practices of prevention, treatment and cure of diseases by humanity is through the use of medicinal plants. In Brazil, the national policy on medicinal plants and herbal medicines aims to guarantee the population access and rational use of medicinal plants and herbal medicines in a sustainable way. The quality of seedlings in the production of medicinal plants is directly linked to the form of vegetative propagation of the species. One of the most used techniques for plant propagation is the cutting, which allows obtaining seedlings from a segment of the plant, maintaining the genetic characteristics of the mother plant. Considering that some species have limiting factors for propagation by seeds, cutting is an alternative method. With this, considering the need for a compilation of technical information on vegetative propagation via cuttings, the objective of the work was to describe through a literature review the information for some of the most used and/or known medicinal plants, namely aloe (Aloe vera), guaco (Mikania spp.), boldo (Plectranthus barbatus), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), ora-pro-nóbis (Perriskia aculeata), mint and mint (Mentha spp), melissa (Melissa officinalis L.), lemon balm (Lippia alba), carqueja (Baccharis trimera), roast fish (Vernonia polysphaera) and bay leaf (Laurus nobilis). For aloe, it is recommended to use cuttings with leaves over 8.0 cm long, while for gorse the recommended minimum length is 20 cm. For mint, the highest averages of seedling set were in cuttings with cutting of the apical portion. And for guaco all cuttings, regardless of the portion of the branch, are indicated for propagation. The ora-pro-nóbis has an indication of propagation through apical cuttings grown under shading. And in the case of lemon balm, the recommendation is to use cuttings with a diameter greater than 1 cm, while for boldo, cuttings with the presence of leaves are recommended, and the same goes for melissa. For rosemary and laurel, the most suitable is propagation with the use of rooting inducers, while for assa pesca it was observed that the highest rate of rooting was observed in the autumn season. That is, considering the limitations of propagation of medicinal species, the use of stem cuttings is a low-cost technique, with the need to develop more research associated with vegetative propagation, aiming to protocol the production of seedlings by this technique.