Effects of whole seed priming on the in vitro germination of hybrid banana embryos (Musa spp.)

Trials were conducted to determine the effects of hydro- and hormonal priming on in vitro germination and regeneration of hybrid banana embryos. Fully-mature seeds of Pisang Jajee × M. acuminata ssp. burmannicoides were hydroprimed (for 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 days) or hormone primed (gibberellic acid (GA₃), 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP), indole-3-acetic acid (IAA)) at different concentrations (2, 5, 10, 15 and 20 ppm) for three days prior to in vitro culture. The embryos were extracted and initiated on basal MS medium devoid of growth regulators. Hydropriming for three days resulted in 40.8% germination compared with 20.8% germination of non-primed seeds. Priming in GA₃ at 10 ppm for three days doubled the germination (82.4%) and also enhanced growth parameters. Early shoot emergence was recorded with BAP priming (5 ppm), while priming with IAA (10 ppm) enhanced root length and root number.