Micropropagation of pistachio species by shoot apex culture

• Published in: Acta horticulturae no. 9122; pp. 529 - 537
• Main Authors: Chaabouni, A. Chelli, Bouzid, R. Gargouri, Drira, N
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: International Society for Horticultural Science 2011
• Subjects: genotype; mature plants; micropropagation; phenol; pistachios; Pistacia; rootstocks; shoots; tissue culture; trees; Tunisia
• ISSN: 0567-7572

Many Tunisian Pistacia genetic resources are still unknown and unevaluated. Conservation of local varieties and rootstocks for future evaluation is the first prerequisite for a breeding program. Tissue culture can be a valuable tool to propagate and conserve genotypes faster and in greater numbers. However, many difficulties must be overcome to establish and develop a tissue culture preservation system, especially when it must begin with mature plant material sampled from old trees, which is frequently necessary with local and endangered resources. Several trials were conducted on micropropagation of P. vera, P. atlantica, and P. terebinthus species at the Olive Tree Institute (Sfax) in Tunisia. This presentation describes micropropagation of these species by shoot apex culture, with emphasis on the establishment and multiplication stages. This technique was applied to assure more conformity and to reduce contamination and release of phenol exudates. P. atlantica was more difficult to establish than P. vera or P. terebinthus species. Establishment and multiplication stages were successfully obtained for the P. vera ‘Mateur’ variety sampled from juvenile and mature trees. For P. atlantica, these stages were reached for explants taken from juvenile and mature material, but the multiplication capacity was rapidly lost.