Fertility of the male gametes of Lagerstroemia indica L. by different coloring methods

Abstract

The Lagerstroemia indica L. is a representative of the family Lythraceae, is popularly known as extreme, resedá rosa or madness. It is a small tree with dense and deciduous canopy, measuring from 2 to 4m high, resistant to dry climate and environmental conditions of cities. The present work aimed to evaluate the pollen feasibility of the Lagerstroemia indica L., through the dyes of 1% Green Malignant, Lugol 2% and Alexander Reactive and 2,3,5 Triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC) at the dilutions of 0.075% and 0.030%. In order to verify the pollen fertility, we used closed flowers from three populations of Lagerstroemia indica L., following the methodology of Guerra & Souza (2002), submitting the treatments. In the application of the TTC dye, anthers of fresh buds were arranged in two concentrations: 0.075% and 0.30%, being evaluated in the periods of 6:00 a.m., 12:00 a.m., 6:00 p.m. and 24:00 a.m. The use of R. dyes from Alexander, V. Malachite 1% and Lugol 2% and from TTC to determine pollen feasibility proved to be efficient in differentiating the fertile and infertile pollen from the species. In the use of TTC it is recommended to use in the 0.30% solution during 12h of fixation of the pollen granules, period in which a higher coloring average was obtained.