Effect of the culture medium physical state and the number of subcultures in the<em> in vitro</em> multiplication of <em>Bambusa vulgaris</em> plants var. <em>vulgaris</em>

Abstract

Bambusa vulgaris var. vulgaris. Scharde ex Wendl. is a fast growing multi-species which provides benefits to agricultural crops. It has been used in plantations and agroforestry systems. In vitro propagation of this species has been made by organogenesis from shoot tip. However, the low rates of multiplication and the presence of phenols have affected the in vitro multiplication in several species of bamboo. This work was carried out to determine the effect of the culture medium physical state and the number of subcultures in the in vitro multiplication of B. vulgaris plants var. vulgaris. A medium composed of MS salts, myo-inositol (100 mg l-1), sucrose (30 g l-1) and 6-BAP (6.0 mg l-1) in liquid and semisolid (2.5 g l-1 Gelrite) was used. The number of shoots per plant and the number of expanded leaves per explants were quantified. The height of the main plant was also measured from the base to the point of insertion of the first leaf. Results showed that the physical state of the culture medium had influence on in vitro multiplication of B. vulgaris var. vulgaris. The highest multiplication coefficient (3.0) was achieved after five subcultures of multiplication in liquid culture medium. Key words: axillary buds, bamboo, multiplication coefficient, organogenesis