IN-VITRO PROPAGATION OF TARO, WITH SPERMINE, ARGININE AND ORNITHINE .2. PLANTLET REGENERATION VIA CALLUS

Regeneration of plantlets from shoot apex-derived callus and ''calloid '' cultures of a local tare [Colocasia esculenta var. antiquorum cv. K eladi Birah] cultivar, was expedited by treatment with high levels of spermine, The total time taken, from culture of primary shoot apices o n modified Linsmaier and Skoog medium supplemented with trichloropheno xyacetic acid and kinetin, to complete plantlet regeneration, was redu ced by 2-16 weeks, when the callus and ''calloid'' cultures were treat ed with 0.01, 0.1 and 1 mM spermine. Furthermore, the number of plantl ets produced per gram callus increased from 25 to 55. On media supplem ented with arginine and ornithine, no callus was initiated from explan ts and no plantlets differentiated from pre-established callus.