Abstract:
The present study was carried out to achieve synchronous germination of
plant materials into vigorous plants of tea (camellia sinensis 1.), under ex vitro
conditions. Sterilized zygotic embryos and zygotic embryonic axes were cultured
on MS basal medium supplemented with 3 mg L"1 BAPandO.5 mgL"1 IBA. To serve
as controls, seeds were sown in a sand bed.
At the 8* week, in vitro plantlets were transferred to ex vitro conditions for
acclimatization, and seeds showing different germination responses were separately
transplanted. Synchronous and significantly high germination (99%) was observed
from cultured embryonic axes in vitro at the 4"' week of culture, but a lower level of
germination (12.7%) from seeds that were sown in the sand bed. Further, healthy
plantlets regenerated from embryonic axes in vitro had erect shoots with short
internodes, as well as tap roots with abundant adventitious roots under ex vitro
conditions, for better adaptation in the field, as compared with seedlings raised by
conventional seed propagation.
