Safe use of plant growth hormones

When using plant growth hormones:

1. Wear protective clothing (rubber gloves, face mask and a lab coat) at all times during use. Make sure contaminated clothing does not come in contact with food.
   
2. Ensure good ventilation during use and avoid inhaling the solution.
   
3. Do not eat or drink while using hormone solutions.
   
4. Keep hormone solutions away from naked flames.
   
5. Pour out, into a covered petri dish, only as much hormone as you can use in 5-10 minutes-about half a teaspoon. Keep lid on petri dish when not in use.
   
6. Do not pour leftovers back into the bottle-pour into a clearly labelled 'waste' bottle for later disposal.
   
7. Keep hormone containers tightly capped and refrigerated when not in use and ensure they are labelled. Do not store in the same fridge as food.
   
8. Wash hands and face thoroughly with soap after using hormone solutions. Wash work surface well and wash petri dish and gloves at least three times in running water.
   
9. If skin contamination does occur, wash immediately with water.

Proprietary brand hormone solutions are now commercially available from retail outlets. For example 'ESI-ROOT' combines Indol-3-yl-Butric Acid with 1-Naphthylacetic acid (IBA and NAA) and CLONEX GEL (IBA) is marketed at various concentrations.

Both of these are water soluble preparations.

Note: Care at all times is essential when students are using hormone solutions.

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