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5.4 DISCUSSION<br />

In vitro culture initiation and multiplication<br />

Preliminary experiments with R. diversiformis, R. flava, R. leipoldtii and R. minutiflora<br />

seedlings showed that hypocotyls were the only seedling organs that gave an in vitro<br />

response for the Romulea species tested. They also show that R. leipoldtii and R.<br />

flava form the highest number <strong>of</strong> shoots per seedling hypocotyl compared to the<br />

other species tested. Because <strong>of</strong> possible vitrification and culture incompetence, the<br />

use <strong>of</strong> BA and shoots generated from callus should be avoided for this genus.<br />

The in vitro response <strong>of</strong> R. diversiformis embryos and hypocotyls, although<br />

morphologically distinct, is equally unproductive, as no shoots were formed after 2<br />

months. A higher concentration <strong>of</strong> cytokinins, or different cytokinins, is perhaps<br />

needed to generate a more pronounced shooting response for explants <strong>of</strong> this<br />

species.<br />

The rooting <strong>of</strong> shoots formed in vitro <strong>of</strong> all species, except R. diversiformis and R.<br />

monadelpha was inhibited to a certain degree by a medium supplemented with 23.2<br />

M kinetin. Experiments performed with the aim <strong>of</strong> finding a concentration <strong>of</strong> kinetin<br />

high enough to induce shooting, but low enough to allow for normal root growth, is<br />

necessary for the efficient production <strong>of</strong> healthy shoots <strong>of</strong> these species. Such an<br />

experiment should investigate the effect <strong>of</strong> various kinetin concentrations between<br />

7.5 and 23.2 µM.<br />

Although R. leipoldtii embryos produced significantly more shoots on a medium with<br />

23.2 µM mTR and 0.5 µM NAA, this medium and a medium supplemented with 2.3<br />

µM mTR and 0.5 µM NAA resulted in a higher percentage <strong>of</strong> cultures with callus. This<br />

indicates that although these are the best media for culture initiation, they are not<br />

suitable for multiplication <strong>of</strong> shoots <strong>of</strong> R. leipoldtii. Shoots produced from this callus<br />

were vitrified.<br />

The fact that there is no significant difference between the number <strong>of</strong> shoots<br />

produced by embryos and hypocotyls <strong>of</strong> R. leipoldtii suggests that excising the<br />

embryos <strong>of</strong> even the smallest seeds <strong>of</strong> all species presented here, except for R.<br />

134

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