In vitro Propagation of Narcissus

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Abstract
Adventitious shoots were induced on leaf, scale and stem explants taken from the basal plate region of flowering-size bulbs on media containing 2–16 mg l−1 6-benzylaminopurine and 0·25–4·0 mg 1−1 1-naphthal-ene acetic acid (NAA). Only the levels of NAA had a significant effect on the numbers of shoots produced. When trimmed and split in half, 6 mm or more diameter in vitro shoots regenerated further adventitious shoots which in turn grew in size suitable for splitting within 16 weeks. The vigour of the first generation of shoots was proportional to the hormone levels used for their initiation. All shoots eventually declined in vigour, senesced and formed dormant bulbils. Split senescent shoots regenerated only a few secondary shoots which quickly became senescent. A total of 500–2000 bulbils could be obtained from each initial bulb within 18 months. Bulbils required 10 weeks at low temperature before planting to break dormancy. Histological observations showed that in twin scales and split shoots, adventitious shoots were regenerated from at least two superficial layers of menstematic cells near to the basal plate. This multicellular mode of origin suggests that plants multiplied from in vitro adventitious shoots could be as genetically uniform as those from natural vegetative increase.