In vitro germination and bulblet and shoot propagation for wild edible Eremurus spectabilis M.Bieb.

Abstract

Eremurus spectabilis M.Bieb is consumed as a vegetable because of its nutritious characteristics. The plants are also used for medicinal purposes, in the cut flower industry as an ornamental geophytes, and in industry as a natural adhesive. The aim of the present study was to improve the in vitro propagation protocol (in vitro germination and bulblet and shoot formation) of E. spectabilis. For this purpose, E. spectabilis seeds were in vitro germinated in four different nutrient media: Murashige and Skoog (MS), Gamborg (B5), White (WH), and Shenk and Hildebrandt (SH). To stimulate bulblet and/or shoot regeneration, hypocotyls of 35-40-day-old in vitro-germinated plantlets were cut into 0.5-1.0 cm pieces, and the resultant explants were cultured in MS media containing 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) (0.5, 1.0, 2.0, and 4.0 mg L-1) + Kinetin (0.5 mg L-1), Thidiazuron (TDZ) (0.5, 1.0, 2.0, and 4.0 mg L-1) + 1-Naphthylacetic acid (NAA) (0, 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0 mg L-1), and 6-Benzylaminopurine (BAP) (0.5, 1.0, 2.0, and 4.0 mg L-1) + 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) (0, 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0 mg L-1). The best outcomes for germination ratio (57.5%) were obtained from the B5 medium. In the third set of in vitro propagation experiments, 100% bulblet formation was achieved in TDZ (0.5 mg L-1) and NAA (0.5 and 0.1 mg L-1) combinations of MS media, and this was followed by 0.5 mg L-1 BAP-containing medium (81.3%). Shoot formation ratios with the same media combinations varied from 60-70%, and the number of shoots per explant varied from 1.4-2.4 shoots. Further in vitro propagation research is planned with larger bulb sizes to develop a protocol for rooting bulblets and/or shoots.