Establishment of efficient micropropagation system of Astragalus vulneraria DC. an important plant of arid landscaping

The genus Astragalus (Leguminosae) is represented by approximately 380 species in Flora of Turkey and all of them are of economic importance. Perennial endemic legume Astragalus vulnerariae DC.(Vulneraria-milkwetch)has attractive yellows flowers and is endemic to the arid lands of Marmara and Central Anatolian region in Turkey. Vulneraria-milkwetchhave very high horticultural potential. The seeds that germinate face difficulties in competing with weeds during the initial years of growth. Plant biotechnology can be used as an alternative to solve this problem. Regeneration of A. vulneraria,is not reported in any of the previous reports. This study aimed to induce shoot regeneration and rooting of in vitro micropropagated A.vulneraria. which may offer a potential for improvement of the plant that carries importance as an alternative for dry lands urban land scaping in areas receiving limited rainfall. The leaves and hypocotyl segements were used as explant. These explants were cultured on MS medium containing 0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2 mg/l Kinetin and 0.5 mg/l NAA. Maximum shoot regeneration frequency and number of shoots per explant were obtained on cotyledon leaf using MS medium containing 2 mg/l Kinetin and 0.5 mg/l NAA. The results showed that the plants could be regenerated on and established to external environmental conditions following above mentioned protocol without any difficulty.

Establishment of efficient micropropagation system of Astragalus vulneraria DC. an important plant of arid landscaping Keywords:

Micropropagation , Astragalus vulnerariae DC , drought