Effective Acclimatization of Epidendrum in vitro Using a Novel Micropropagation Vessel

To overcome various disadvantages of conventional culture vessels and to employ photoautotrophic micropropagation techniques and in order to reduce the cost of film culture vessels, a multiple-layered and very inexpensive OTP film made of TPX (4-methyl-1-pentane polymer) and CPP (a polypropylene) with characteristics similar to the PFA (tetrafluoroethylene perfluoroakyl vinyl ether copolymer) film, has been used to make a novel disposable film culture vessel, termed the Vitron. In this study, Epidendrum (E. Rouge Magic x E. Joseph Lii Mother’s Day Koto) shoots at the three leaf stage were cultured under high CO2 enrichment at a low photosynthetic photon flux density in three film culture systems: Miracle Pack (MP) using PFA film, MP using OTP film and Vitron with sugar-free liquid modified Vacin and Went medium and rockwool multiblockTM as a substrate. The in vitro and ex vitro growth of Epidendrum plantlets cultured in the three film culture systems were significantly similar, producing normal and vigorous plantlets. The net photosynthetic rate of in vitro Epidendrum plantlets cultured in the three film culture systems were also significantly similar, suggesting that the novel Vitron film culture system can replace conventional culture vessels for Epidendrum photoautotrophic micropropagation. This study further emphasizes that Epidendrum plantlets can be well-rooted and acclimatized in vitro and transfer to a greenhouse does not require any additional acclimatization step, which is usually an additional economic and time-consuming step.