Storage of gerbera propagated in vitro

by Teresa Hempel and Maciej Hempel

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Originally published in: Proceedings of International Symposium: Plant Tissue and Cell Culture Application to Crop Improvement, Olomouc, Czechoslovakia, 24-29 September 1984: 559-560

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Introduction

Gerbera is one of the most important cut flower crops in Poland and also the main crop in tissue culture production. Its planting season lasts only two months - June and July. Storage of rooted in vitro plantlets is economical because it improves organization of work in laboratories.

In the literature of the subject, we found only one paper with general remarks on the possibility of storage of gerbera grown in vitro (Maia and Bettachini 1977). However, no studies were published on the influence of storage on survival and subsequent growth of stored plantlets.

Materials and methods

Shoots of gerbera cv. Marleen obtained by micropropagation were rooted on standard gerbera rooting medium (Murashige et al. 1974). After 3 weeks of rooting they were stored in darkness in conical flasks in which they had been rooted or in plastic boxes after removal from conical flasks. The influence of temperature (1°C and 4°C) and time of storage (1, 2, 4, 8, and 12 weeks) on the quality of stored plantlets and their subsequent growth after planting in a greenhouse was investigated. The evaluation of the plantlets growth was conducted 6 weeks after planting. The experiments were repeated 3 times.

Results

The quality of plants stored in 4°C was much better than plants stored in 1°C. The dying of root tips of the plantlets stored in boxes was observed after 1 week at 1°C and after 4 weeks at 4°C. If the plantlets were stored in flasks the dying was observed after 4 and 12 weeks at 1°C and 4°C, respectively. The temperature, period of storage and the kind of a vessel influenced survival and the subsequent growth of plants in a greenhouse (Table 1 and Table 2).

Conclusions

The temperature of 4°C is more suitable for storage of rooted in vitro gerbera plantlets than 1°C.
Plants in rooting flasks could be stored in 4°C 12 weeks without any detrimental effect on their survival and subsequent growth after planting. However, plants taken out of rooting flasks could be stored at this temperature no longer than 1 week.

References

Maia, E. Bettachini, B. (1977): Travaux sur Gerbera, Jurnees d'etude du 18 novembre 1977, Frejus: 85-89

Murashige, T., Serpa, M., Jones, J.B. (1974): HortScience 9: 175-180