The objective of this research was to evaluate differents citrus bud-forcing methods of 'Valência' orange grafted on 'Swingle' citrumelo: bending and cutting off the rootstock stem, associated with hydrogen cyanamide application. Using a completely randomized experimental design in a 2 x 2 factorial it was evaluated the bending or the cutting off rootstock stem, and the application or not of the growth regulator in hydrogen cyanamide base 1% (H.C.). It was evaluated the bud sprout index at the 50th and the 80th days, as well the height, stem diameter and the number of leaves at the 80th, 110th and 140th days after the treatments aplication . The H.C. did not influence significantly on bud sprout. The cutting off rised the bud sprout in 26% in relation to bending. On the other hand, bending the rootstock stem provided the largest vigour to the plants, considering the stem height, diameter and number of leaves of the stems. In the final evaluation, the plants forced by bending showed stem height 75% higher than the cutting off treatment.
propagation; grafting; bending; cutting off; hydrogen cyanamide
