Breaking Tuber Dormancy with Rindite

CAUTION – Rindite is very poisonous.  Do NOT breathe fumes or get Rindite in contact with skin!  Use only under fume hood or in a well-ventilated area.

Rindite:     7 parts Ethylene chlorohydrin (2-chloroethanol)
                3 parts Ethylene dichloride (1,2-dichloroethanol)
                1 part Carbon tetrachloride

1)      Warm tubers at 70-75°F for 3 days (4-6 days for larger tubers).  Tubers must be healed over, and should not have any sprouts.

2)      Place tubers in an airtight container.  Container should not be more than 1/3 to ½ full of tubers; if container is less than 1/10 full, the dosage of Rindite should be reduced.  Treat at 75-80°F (can get good results with as low as 70°F); higher temperatures may result in injury.

3)      Treat with a total of 4 ml Rindite per cubic foot of container space (4 ml/ft³ = 210 ml/m³ = 0.141 ml/l).  Use 1/3 of this amount on the first day, 1/3 on the second, and 1/3 on the third day.

  8” ceramic pot:  3.80 1 volume = .536 ml Rindite total = 0.18 ml Rindite per day
10” ceramic pot:  5.30 1 volume = .747 ml Rindite total = 0.25 ml Rindite per day

4)      Place Rindite in a dish or beaker containing cheesecloth, cotton, or paper towels moistened with water (to increase the relative humidity in the container).  Do not allow Rindite to touch the tubers (may result in injury).

5)      Seal container air-tight.  Cover ceramic pots with glass, and seal with petroleum jelly.  Open containers only to add more Rindite.

6)      After three days of treating, uncover container under fume hood, being sure to close hood, or in a well-ventilated area.  Allow container to air out for 24 hours before removing tubers.

7)      Store tubers at about 70°F until they sprout.