Morphogenetic responses of six Philodendron cultivars in vitro.

In vitro morphogenic response of nodal explants from six cultivars of Philodendron viz, blue mistic, painted lady, pink prince, pluto, royal queen and green emperor was studied. Frequency and number of shoot formation depend on the cultivars and concentration of BAP. High frequency and number of shoot formation were obtained w hen the nodal explants were cultured in Nitsch medium supplemented with BAP (6.8-11.8 microM), sucrose (2%) and agar (0.45%), initially in the dark for 8-10 weeks followed by 16 hr photoperiod. Regenerated shoots were rooted on medium without growth regulators. After two weeks of hardening, rooted and rootless shoots were established in the soil with more than 90 and 65% survival rates respectively, while the unhardened plantlets showed a much lower percentage (20%) establishment. A standard protocol for the rapid multiplication of Philodendron is presented.