Micrografting of Physic Nut (Jatropha curcus)-A Biodiesel Plant Panghal Sarina1,*, Beniwal V.S.2, Beniwal Puneet3 1Department of TCL, The Karnal Co-Operative Sugarmills Ltd, Karnal, Haryana, India 2Department of Horticulture, CCSHAU, Hisar, Haryana, India 3Department of Environmental Sciences, M.D. University, Rohtak, Haryana, India *Corresponding author e-mail id: sss84biotech@gmail.com
Online published on 27 April, 2017. Abstract An efficient and reproducible method for the regeneration of Jatropha curcas plants with a tap root system has been developed. An in vitro shoot tip grafting technique was adopted to increase recovery of non-rooting shoots developed in culture. The in vitro grafting success rate was dependent on a number of factors. The success rate was higher in 4–6 mm stock-scions stem diameter followed by 6–8 mm irrespective of the grafting method. Among different grafting methods, maximum success (90.0%) was observed in top cleft grafted plants followed by side cleft grafted plants (81.4%). The best height from base of root stock for cleft grafting was 30–40 mm with a success rate of 92.0%. Effects of rootstock age on success of grafts were obtained on 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30-day-old seedlings keeping the scion size unchanged. Seedlings of 15–25 days had the best graft survival. The effect of various media composition on success rate of micro grafting was also investigated. Medium supplemented with 3.0 mg L-1 6-benzyladenine and 1.0 mg L-1 indole-3-butyric acid + additives (50 mgL-1 adenine sulphate + 100 mgL−1 glutamine + 25 mg L−1 L-arginine + 0.0025% citric acid + 0.005% ascorbic acid) produced the highest grafting success (93.3%). In this communication, we have demonstrated for the first time the successful use of in vitro grafting in J. curcas for establishing plants with a strong tap root system from in vitro grown shoots. Top Keywords Micro grafting, Shoot tip grafting, Rootstock, Scion, Grafts, In vitro Jatropha curcas. Top |