Breaking Seed Dormancy of Water Lily (Nymphaea Alba L.) Under In Vitro Conditons

ABSTRACT

Water lily (Nymphaea alba L.) is an important and popular aquatic perenniel plant. It has been used for ornamental and pharmaceutical purposes in Turkey and various countries. The populations of white water lily have seen rapid erosion in the last few years due to fast urbanization and industrialization that has produced negative effect on the lily's habitats. It is multiplied vegetatively primarily through rhizomes, which produce uniform populations. Multiplication of plants through seeds helps to maintain genetic variability that could be easily used to preserve the species in an effective way. Multiplication of plants through seeds is difficult due to development of dormancy with the passage of time. The results of the study showed that the fresh seeds of the species gave highest germination on MS medium containing 1 mg/l BAP + 0.1 mg/l IAA. However, the seeds that were stored for five months at 4⁰C failed to germinate on medium containing 1 mg/l BAP + 0.1 mg/l IAA, either used alone or combined with sucrose, IBA and GA₃ in different concentrations in the germination medium. After five months these seeds could be germinated only on germination medium that contained 0.05 to 4 mg/l TDZ, with highest germination on 2 mg/l TDZ with germination frequency of 51.37%. No significant variation on germination was recorded in the light or dark; however, the seed germinated in the dark produced 2–3 times longer seedlings compared to those germinated under 16 h light photoperiod. This study signifies the role of TDZ to break the dormancy of N. alba seeds. As such the results indicate that TDZ could be used effectively to propagate N. alba from seeds which could help to conserve and multiply this plant species at its natural habitat.

Keywords:

• aquatic plant
• white waterlily
• Nymphaea alba L.
• seed germination
• TDZ
• growth regulators
• dormancy