CALLUS INDUCTION AND PLANT REGENERATION IN PUNICA GRANATUM L. ʻNANAʼ FROM LEAF EXPLANTS

In this investigation, leaf explants of a local cultivar of dwarf pomegranate were placed on Murashige and Skoog (1962) (MS) medium supplemented with various concentrations of 6-benzyl adenin (BA) and naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) for callus induction. After 40 days, maximum callus induction was observed on a media containing 1 mg L-1 BA and 0.2 to 0.4 mg L-1 NAA. However, the highest callus growth was obtained on a medium containing 1 mg L-1 BA and 1 mg L-1 NAA. The highest number of shoots (7 shoots per explants) was obtained by transferring the calli to the media containing 5 mg L-1 BA with 0.1 mg L-1 NAA. Maximum shoot proliferation was observed when shoots were cultured on woody plant medium (WPM) supplemented with 5 mg L-1 kinetin (Kin). In this treatment, after 4 subcultures, 36 shoots were produced from one original explant. Among treatments used in rooting experiments, shoots cultured on WPM medium containing 0.2 mg L-1 indol butyric acid (IBA) had the maximum root percentage (100%) and good root growth (2.06 cm mean length and 2 roots in each explants). Rooted plantlets were cultured in a soil mixture containing vermiculite (60%), perlite (30%) and coco peat (10%) v/v. After 2 months, 80% of plants survived and transferred to the greenhouse.