A Simple and Efficient Protocol for Rapid Regeneration and Propagation of Taro (Cotocasia esculenta (L.) Schott.) in Vitro from Apical Meristems

摘要

An efficient and simple protocol was developed for the in vitro regeneration and propagation of taro (Colocasia esculenta) cv. 'Muktakeshi'. Apical meristems (~1 cm) excised from leaf blight-resistant taro cultivar cv. 'Muktakeshi' grown in a net house were used as explants. Most multiple shoots (i.e., 3.6/explant), which formed on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 5 mg L~(-1) 6-benzyladenine and 1 mg L~(-1) alpha-naphthaleneacetic acid, could be rooted by transferring the 4-week-oldshoots to MS basal medium without plant growth regulators. After 2 weeks, well developed plantlets were hardened in plastic cups in potting mixture (vermiculite + sand, 1:1, v/v). Acclimatized plants were transferred to 30-cm plastic pots containing topsoil and vermicompost (3:1, v/v) where they grew well.