The Varronia curassavica Jacq., black sage, is an anti-inflammatory medicinal species that can be propagated by seed; however, the development of efficient methods for vegetative propagation will enable uniformity in the populations and cloning of plants of interest regarding the agronomic aspects and chemical composition. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of the naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) and indole butyric acid (IBA) and different substrates on the rooting of semi-hardwood cuttings of black sage. The experiments were conducted in a greenhouse at Montes Claros, in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil, as a randomized complete design. For the experiment to test the influence of auxin, the cuttings were subjected to treatments with NAA and IBA at the concentrations of 0, 500, 1000, 2000, 3000 and 4000 mg L-1, and for the experiment with substrates, five substrates were evaluated (expanded vermiculite + carbonized rice husk (1:1); expanded vermiculite; commercial organic substrate for vegetable (Tropstrato ® HT); sand; soil + compost (1:1)). After 90 days, in both experiments, we evaluated the rooting percentage of cuttings, dead cuttings, live cuttings with callus, dead cuttings with callus, number of roots per cutting and length of the three longest roots (cm). The best plant growth regulator for the rooting of the species is the IBA at a concentration of 2.000 mg L-1, and the NAA is not recommended for the induction of roots in cuttings of black sage. Vermiculite with carbonized rice husk in the ratio of 1:1 showed greater percentage of rooting in cuttings of black sage than soil + composting (1:1); other substrates did not differ among themselves.
medicinal plants; cuttings; auxin; vegetative propagation
