In vitro germination and propagation of a threatened medicinal orchid, Cymbidium aloifolium (L.) Sw. through artificial seed

ABSTRACT

Objective: To study the in vitro germination and plantlet regeneration from artificial seeds of Cymbidium aloifolium (C. aloifolium), a highly threatened medicinal orchid of Nepal. Methods: Artificial seeds were produced in vitro by encapsulation of protocorms with 4% sodium alginate and 0.2 mol/L calcium chloride solution. In vitro germination and plantlet regeneration of the artificial seeds were tested by culturing them on different strength of Murashige and Skoog (MS) liquid media (0.25, 0.5 and 1.0) and MS liquid medium supplemented with 0.5 mg/L benzyl amino purine and 0.5 mg/L naphthalene acetic acid. Freshly produced artificial seeds were stored up to 28 d at 4°C. In order to check the viability, storage artificial seeds were treated with five different sterilization techniques (T