ABSTRACT
Objective To study asymbiotic seed germination and mass propagation of Dendrobium lasianthera which is one of the endangered medicinal orchids using seeds. Methods The 14 weeks old hand pollinated seeds were sown on Vacin and Went (VW) solid medium supplemented with various concentrations of peptone (1, 2, 3 g/L) and without peptone which was used as control treatment. At the 4, 8, and 12 weeks after the seeds were sown, seed germination and shoot formation were investigated. To evaluate the role of organic nutrient additives on subsequent shoot development and root formation, particular shoots with about 1 cm length contains 1–2 leaves obtained from the seeds germination was cultured on VW medium additives with different of organic nutrient: 15% coconut water, 2 g/L peptone, 150 g/L banana homogenate, and without organic nutrient was used as control. After 16 weeks of culture, the plantlet height, number of leaves, number of roots, leaf length and root length were recorded. Results The supplementation of 2 g/L peptone in VW medium was proven to be suitable concentration for seed germination (100%) and shoot formation with 84.0% the protocorm development to phase 5 (shoot). VW medium containing 15% coconut water was effectively improved the shoot development, with well developed roots and leaves compared to the other treatment and 95% of acclimatized plantlets survived. Conclusions This protocol is an efficient way for the in vitro mass propagation of this Dendrobium lasianthera.