Acta Univ Latv (2008) 745: 17–23

Morphogenesis of wild orchid Dactylorhiza fuchsii in tissue culture

Abstract

Dactylorhiza fuchsii which is included in the Red Data Book of the Baltic Region and listed in Annex B of the EC Habitats Directive was chosen as a model to study the initial development stages of asymbiotic development in tissue culture. Half-mature seeds were removed from sterilized seed capsules and sown onto filter-paper bridges in culture tubes with initial liquid medium and kept in the dark at 23°C. Germination started after two months of incubation. Protocorms formed were transplanted into fresh medium. Initiation of roots and tubers was observed after 3 to 6 months of germination. Plantlets with ~ 2 cm long shoots and well-developed roots were transferred into a light chamber. New plants of D. fuchsii with two leaves, tubers and roots appropriate for transplanting into soil were obtained in the next spring, e.g. about 8 to 9 months after the start of germination. The use of in vitro methods significantly reduced the relatively long period of time necessary for development of orchid plants in natural conditions.