Abstract
Plectranthus edulis (Vatke) Agnew is a tuber-bearing food crop in Ethiopia. However, its productivity is hampered by shortage of pathogen-free planting materials. Therefore, the objective of this study was to develop micropropagation protocol for this plant using meristem to produce clean planting materials. Mersitems were collected from apical and axillary shoots from Holeta and Welayta areas and cultured on MS medium containing gibberellic acid (GA3) (1.0 mg l-1), α-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) (0.1 mg l-1) in combination with 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) (0.1, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 and 5.0 mg l-1). Shoots were multiplied on MS medium containing 0.1, 0.5, or 1.0 mg l-1 of BAP or 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 or 3.0 mg l-1 of Kinetin alone or their combination with 0.05 or 0.1 mg l-1 NAA. In vitro and ex vitro rooting was performed using different types of auxins followed by acclimatization. The highest percentage of shoots initiated from collected mersitem at Holeta (73%) was obtained on MS medium containing 1.0 mg l-1 BAP, 1.0 mg l-1 GA3 and 0.1 mg l-1 NAA. The highest shoot number explants-1 (7.2) was obtained on MS medium containing 1.0 mg l-1 Kinetin and 0.1 mg l-1 NAA, whereas the highest root number shoot-1 (6.2) was obtained from ex vitro. All plants derived from Holeta and 96.7% of those from the Welayta survived after acclimatization. These results provided rapid and reproducible conditions for propagation of relatively pathogen-free planting material of this plant. Key words: In vitro propagation, meristem culture, micropropagation, Plectranthus edulis (Vatke) Agnew, shoots multiplication. 
Highlights
Plectranthus edulis (Vatke) Agnew is known as Coleus edulis and an indigenous root crop in Ethiopia
It serves an important part of the diet of the population (PGRC, 1996; IBC, 2005) and is widely used as a major source of tasty carbohydrates in many parts of Ethiopia (Taye et al, 2007)
P. edulis is one of the native tuber crops in Ethiopia (IBC, 2005) and is cultivated in the south and south western parts of Ethiopia whereas the wild species are found throughout the country (PGRC, 1996)
Summary
Plectranthus edulis (Vatke) Agnew is known as Coleus edulis and an indigenous root crop in Ethiopia. It serves an important part of the diet of the population (PGRC, 1996; IBC, 2005) and is widely used as a major source of tasty carbohydrates in many parts of Ethiopia (Taye et al, 2007). P. edulis is one of the native tuber crops in Ethiopia (IBC, 2005) and is cultivated in the south and south western parts of Ethiopia whereas the wild species are found throughout the country (PGRC, 1996) It serves as a medicinal plant and eating the cooked root avoids loss of appetite (Megersa, 2010)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
