Synthetic Seed Technology Development and Production Studies for Storage, Transport, and Industrialization of Bracken Spores.

Bo Kook Jang,Ju Sung Cho,Cheol Hee Lee

doi:10.3390/plants9091079

Abstract

Bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum var. latiusculum (Desv.) Underw. ex A. Heller) has long been grown industrially in South Korea. Conventional propagation methods, including planting rhizomes and in vitro seedling culture, are labor intensive and expensive, and thus not commercially suitable. We aimed to develop a system to produce synthetic seeds using fern spores (SFS). Synthetic seeds were prepared by mixing bracken spores and alginate matrix. Spore germination and gametophyte and sporophyte growth and development from SFS proceeded normally. Spore density affected gametophyte and sporophyte numbers. SFS prepared using cold (4 °C) long-term storage spores (even 7-year-old spores) could effectively form sporophytes. The highest germination was observed at 25 °C. Soaking-treated SFS successfully formed sporophytes, even after 30 days of storage at 4 °C; indeed, sporophytes formed even after five days of storage at 25 °C during transport conditions. SFS were sown in plug trays for commercial use. Young sporophytes grown from plug seedlings were greenhouse cultivated, and transplanting within eight weeks was effective for root growth and growing-point formation. Developing synthetic seeds is a feasible solution for facilitating efficient transport and the handling of small-sized fern spores; furthermore, this SFS technology provides the basis for fern seedling culture and fern spore industrialization.

Highlights

Ferns have been consumed as food in many countries for centuries [1]
seeds using fern spores (SFS) produced using the 2.5 mm tip produced an average of 182.0 seeds in 10 mL of alginate solution
(91.0%), and the number of sporophytes (2.67) were highest for SFS produced using the 2.5 mm tip and a spore density of 1.0 mg/100 mL, the formation of gametophytes and sporophytes tended to increase with increasing spore density when the 4 mm tip was used. These results show that the growth of young sporophytes and overall growth improved with increasing spore density (Table 2)

Summary

Introduction

Ferns have been consumed as food in many countries for centuries [1]. As rich sources of protein, fiber, minerals, vitamins, essential amino acids, and fatty acids, ferns provide important nutrients to humans [2]. Ferns have a high content of secondary metabolites that comprise saccharides, phenolics, polyketides, and terpenoids [3], whose pharmacological activities as diuretics, analgesics, and anti-inflammatories in cases of cystitis, dermatitis, and common cold, and as emmenagogues, have been extensively reported [4,5,6,7]. A. Heller) is the most popular edible fern in South Korea where, it has long been used as an industrial crop. The production of brackens in South Korea has reached 11,043 tons, for an annual revenue of 56 million USD [8], and even more brackens are marketed if imports are taken into account as well

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Conclusion