A horticulturist wishes to artificially induce flowering in a mango orchard to improve the crop yield. Which of the following plant growth regulators should be applied to achieve this specific result?

Step-by-step solution

According to NCERT, ethylene is a gaseous plant growth regulator that is explicitly used to induce flowering in mango. Auxins are used to initiate rooting in stem cuttings and induce parthenocarpy in tomatoes, but not to induce flowering in mangoes. Gibberellins are known to cause bolting in rosette plants and increase stem length. Cytokinins stimulate lateral shoot growth and help overcome apical dominance. Answer: Ethylene