The Journal of Heredity 1942:33(5):200-201
© 1942 The American Genetic Association 33:200-201
research-article |
COLCHICINE STIMULATION OF SEED GERMINATION IN PETUNIA AXILLARIS
University of Wisconsin
Abstract
The germination of Petunia axillaris seeds was stimulated by colchicine. There was an increase in the number of seeds that germinated as well as a reduction in germination time. The optimum concentration for germination(0.04 per cent) was high enough to induce polyploidy. Growth of seedlings was seriously retarded only by colchicine in concentrations of 0.1 per cent or stronger, the concentrations that have been most widely used in seed treatment. In view of these results, it seems that seed treatment using weak solutions of colchicine rather than strong, the optimum concentration to be determined for each kind of plant, should yield satisfactory results in the practical production of large numbers of polyploid plants.