Effects of a commercial biocide, kasugamycin and consistency of the culture medium on the in vitro establishment of bamboo1

ABSTRACT The contamination by microorganisms and oxidation of explants in the in vitro establishment of bamboo are recurrent problems for its micropropagation. In the present study, effects of the biocide Plant Preservative Mixture (PPM™), the antibiotic kasugamycin and the consistency of the culture medium were evaluated in the in vitro establishment of Bambusa vulgaris,Phyllostachys bambusoides and Dendrocalamus asper. The presence of PPM™ in the culture medium had a significant effect using 2 mL L-1 or 4 mL L-1 concentrations, as well as in the liquid culture medium, increasing the plants established in the autumn. Kasugamycin promoted variable responses for all the three species, depending on the season. There was interaction among the factors, demonstrating that higher rates of viable plants can be obtained by combining different strategies to reduce the oxidation and contamination. For the in vitro establishment of B. vulgaris,P. bambusoides and D. asper, it is recommended to add 2 mL L-1 or 4 mL L-1 of PPM™ to the liquid culture medium.