Tissue culture studies on the genus Rosa with special reference to the shoot tip.

Abstract

A modified Berthelot (1934)-Knop (1865) solution was found to support the growth of rose pith segments while Murashige and Skoog's (1962) medium did not. Possibly the NH(4)+ content of the latter medium is toxic to rose tissue. The best callus growth was obtained with indolebutyric acid (IBA), which was superior to naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA), indoleacetic acid (IAA) and 2,4 dichlorophenoxybutyric acid (2,4-DB) at the concentrations tested, while gibberellic acid (GA) greatly enhanced callus formation in the presence of both IBA and kinetin. Occasional differentiation of shoots was observed both in cultured pith segments and in callus formed at the basal cut surface of the shoot tips. However, the precise culture conditions required for differentiating rose pith and callus tissue remain unknown. An interaction was found between NAA and kinetin with regard to root and leaf development in shoot tips. Root formation took place only in the absence of kinetin and in the NAA range of 0.5 to 2.0 mg/l, while normal leaf development occurred only in the absence of NAA and in the presence of 4.0 to 18.0 mg/l kinetin. Neither any combination of NAA and kinetin nor the sequential application of growth substances induced both root and shoot growth. Furthermore, shoot tips sampled in late summer formed roots much more readily than tips sampled in late winter. GA reduced the favourable effect of high kinetin treatments on leaf development. Different species of auxin affected growth of the shoot tip in different ways. IAA did not inhibit growth of the shoot tip in the same manner as was observed for NAA, IBA and 2,4 dichlorophenoxybutyric acid (2,4-D). It is concluded that further experimentation with different ratios of various species of auxin and cytokinin, as well as the sequential administration of growth substances, may lead to the successful culture of intact plantlets from rose shoot tips and shoot apical meristems, and ultimately to possibly virus-free rose plants.