An Efficient System for Regenerating Taraxacum Pieninicum Pawł. from Seedling Explants

Abstract

An efficient micropropagation system for Taraxacum pieninicum using seedling explants germinated in vitro is described. Shoot tips and fragments of cotyledons, hypocotyls and roots were isolated from several-day-old seedlings. The highest response, 100% frequency with 12.3 axillary shoots/explant, was from shoot tips on medium supplemented with 0.5 mg L -1 BA and 0.05 mg L -1 NAA. In subsequent subcultures the number of shoots was significantly higher on all explants cultured on medium containing 0.25 and 0.5 mg L -1 BA, and the multiplication rate was highest (20 shoots/explant) in the 4th passage. Shoots rooted on MS and 1/2 MS medium; the highest rooting frequency was 90% and the highest number of roots 2.7/shoot. Rooted plants showed 96.2% survival in sterile soil:sand, and 100% survival in hydroponic culture. Regenerated plants flowered in the second year after acclimatization and yielded viable seeds. This protocol for obtaining complete plants through micropropagation may prove useful for conservation of the genetic resources of this and other endangered species.