Clonal propagation of Acacia catechu Willd. by shoot tip culture

A method is described for in vitro micropropagation through shoot apices of Acacia catechu Willd., a semi-arid tree valued for Katha (a tanin-like sub stance obtained from red heart wood of 10-20 year old trees) and timber. Ex plants were excised from 15-days-old in vitro grown seedlings raised from s uperior seed stocks. Shoot bud induction from shoot apex explants was obser ved on Murashige and Skoog's (MS) [12] medium containing various growth reg ulators. A maximum of 12 shoots was obtained on MS medium supplemented with 1.5 mg/l 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) and 1.5 mg/l kinetin. Well-developed sh oots (3-4 cm long) were rooted on 1/4 strength MS medium with 3.0 mg/l indo le-3-acetic acid (IAA) and sucrose 1.5%. In vitro regenerated plantlets of A. catechu were transferred to field conditions.