CURIOUS ABOUT WHAT MAKES

MitoGrow unique?

In the world of plant care, resilience is key, which is why each unique input of Aqua 3-IA contributes to maximizing plant growth and durability. Watch the video below to see how the ingredients in Aqua 3-IA, and their specific roles, can revolutionize your plant care routine or scroll down to read about the science behind MitoGrow.
Used alongside fertilizers, Aqua 3-IA allows for:

Healthy Roots, Healthy Plant.

Web White Paper 2023

Aqua 3-IA is an auxin plus biostimulants used to promote root growth and development in most species of trees, shrubs, perennials, and annuals. Aqua 3-IA encourages and improves overall nutrient and water uptake, thereby enhancing vigor and growth as well as tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses. It is a suspendable dry powder containing a proprietary combination of the growth hormone, Indol-3-butryic acid (IBA); vitamins B1, B3, & B6; kinetin; Bacillus amyloliquefaciens; seventeen varieties mycorrhizae; seaweed extract (Ascophyllum nodosum); and carbohydrates.

How it Works

In healthy plants, the shoot growth and root growth are balanced resulting in growth that is limited only by the availability of light, water, nutrients, and the plant’s ability to absorb them.

Unfortunately, environmental stressors, root damage, pest damage, age, and disease can upset the shoot to root balance. If new root growth lags behind shoot growth, and a sudden change in the environment occurs, such as a drought, the plant can rapidly decline and die in as little as a few days. In established trees the decline my take several years.

The patented combination of plant hormones and biostimulants in Aqua 3-IA defends the plant against stressors by creating a healthy root biome with mutualistic relationships between the plant, bacteria, and mycorrhizae. The hormones and microbe relationships also activate the plant’s innate immunity preparing it for a variety biotic and abiotic assaults before they occur.

INDOLE-3-BUTYRIC ACID (IBA)

Increases root growth

Increases root hair development

Activates plant immune system

Increases resistance to abiotic stress

Increases crop yield

Stimulates flower development

Promotes fruit development

Reduces transplant shock

IBA is an auxin, and auxins are a subset of plant hormones responsible for the morphogenesis of plants. They are generally produced in one part of the plant and are transported to other parts of the plant where the auxin concentration affects the tissue type and development. IBA and its sister compound IAA, Indol-3 Acetic Acid, are produced in the apical buds of the plant and travel to the roots where they stimulate new root development. These new roots then acquire additional water and nutrients from the soil to support new growth throughout the plant. In healthy plants the shoot growth and root growth remain balanced resulting in plants that grow at the natural rate for their particular species. IBA is more biologically active than IAA and because Aqua 3-IA uses the naturally occurring acid form of IBA, rather than the salt form found in most products, it is more persistent in the root zone due to the acid’s lower solubility in water.

When the natural balance between IBA production in the buds and root growth stimulation becomes out of step with each other, the result is a negative feedback loop leading to a steady decline and eventual death of the plant. Application of the Aqua 3-IA formula has been shown to override the declining auxin cycle and restore the root growth rate so that it can support a healthy growth rate for the entire plant.

There are many agricultural products that contain IBA, but Aqua 3-IA is unique in the concentration of IBA it provides for use on transplanted or established plants. Only products specifically formulated for rooting of cuttings have higher concentration of IBA.

Much More Than an Auxin

Maximizing the initial root stimulating effects of the treatment is an important distinction of Aqua 3-IA versus other products containing IBA or IAA alone or in combination. The addition of B vitamins and kinetin synergistically increases the metabolic boost to the plants. The addition of B vitamins to our product exempts Aqua 3-IA from EPA regulation while providing additional benefits to the plant. Recent research has shown that Vitamin B1 can be an activator of systemic acquired disease resistance in plants. Vitamin B1 has been shown to increase root development in the lab and when combined with Vitamins B3 and B6, those root growth benefits have increased by a factor of sixteen.

VITAMIN B1

 Increases root development

 Increases shoot growth

 Increases resistance to abiotic stress

Increases resistance to biotic stress

 Reduces transplant shock

VITAMIN B3

 Regulates seed development

 Increases resistance to salinity

 Increases resistance to DNA damage

 Stimulates cell metabolism

VITAMIN B6

 Increases resistance to UV-B damage

 Increases resistance to biotic stress

 Reduces cell death due to ROS
(reactive oxygen species)

Kinetin is found in seaweed extract (Ascophyllum nodosum). It works synergistically with auxins to stimulate root growth and has a number of other beneficial effects on plants.

KINETIN

 Increases rate of cell division

 Increases seed germination rate

 Increases shoot growth

Increases resistance to salinity

Increases resistance to high temperature

 Reduces cell death

Sustained Benefits

Aqua-3-IA contains microbes that colonize the roots and the soil. These organisms provide long-term benefits to the plants. Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (BA) promotes plant growth and protects plants from pathogens. BA produces IBA, IAA, and other plant hormones in the root zone where they are absorbed and continue the effects initiated by the other components in Aqua 3-IA. BA activates innate disease resistance in plant tissue. The presence of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens on the plant roots facilitates mycorrhizal colonization.

BACILLUS AMYLOLIQUEFACIENS

 Increases beneficial root biome

 Produces plant hormones

 Increases resistance to abiotic stress

Increases nutrient uptake

Releases proteins, fatty acids, & enzymes

Facilitates mycorrhizal root colonization

Induces systemic resistance in plants

 Reduces root zone pathogens

Rapidly developing roots are primed for associating with mycorrhizae. These beneficial fungi work with plant roots to extract more water and nutrients from the soil than the plant roots can alone. Mycorrhizae also actively compete against soil pathogens creating a root zone biome that helps sustain continued healthy root development. Aqua 3-IA contains living propagules from seventeen species of mycorrhizae. Mycorrhizae do more than acquire extra nutrients for plants and sustain a healthy root zone. Studies show that once symbiosis is established, these beneficial fungi highly upregulate plant genes involved in the biosynthesis of IAA, the uptake and metabolism of nitrogen, and the uptake of phosphorus. The increased production of IAA helps sustain the effects of the initial application of IBA.

MYCORRHIZAE

 Increases macro nutrient absorption

 Increases micro nutrient absorption

 Increases water absorption

 Enhanced root growth

 Increases resistance to abiotic stress

 Increases resistance to biotic stress

 Induces systemic resistance in plants

Reduces root zone pathogens

Aqua 3-IA is formulated with carbohydrate as the component carrier rather that water. The resulting dry formulation has a significantly longer shelf life with improved shipping characteristics. Additionally, the carbohydrates simulate natural plant root exudates that signal the microorganisms to germinate and begin association with the plant roots.

CARBOHYDRATE CARRIER

 Simulates root exudates

 Recruits beneficial bacteria and fungi

 Moderates plant–rhizomicrobiome interactions

 Improves soil moisture retention