In Vitro Propagation And Rejuvenation of Senescent Maternal Plant of Ardisia Crenata Var. Bicolor (Primulaceae)

Ardisia crenata var. bicolor is an ornamental shrub, owing to its declined wild population, recalcitrant seeds and few high-quality cuttings, the main objective of this study was to optimize an in vitro propagation protocol by using tip shoot and nodal segment as explants from senescent plant. Explants were sterilized and cultured on Muraghige and Skoog medium contained 1.0 mg·L-1 benzylaminopurine and 0.05 mg·L-1 1-naphthaleneacetic acid for shoot initiation. For shoot proliferation, explants were cultured on MS medium with 1.0 mg·L-1 BAP, 0.1 mg·L-1 NAA, and 0.5 mg·L-1 kinetin, and the proliferation coefficient were 3.1 and 2.5. Rooting was achieved by two explants in half-strength MS medium containing 0.5 mg·L-1 indole-3-butyric acid + 0.1 mg·L-1 or 0.2 mg·L-1 NAA, and 0.5 g·L-1 activated charcoal. The highest rooting rate were 72.7% and 65.1% with the highest mean number of roots (4.2 and 2.8, respectively). After acclimatization, 83.3% and 81.2% of plants were survived in the greenhouse. The plant can be rejuvenated via in vitro propagation and provide a reference for supplying the planting materials quickly with an uniform genotype.

Application of Introduced Representatives of Lonicera pileata Oliv. in Landscaping of the Right-Bank Forest-Steppe of Ukraine

This article deals with the possibilities to introduce the ornamental shrub Lonicera pileata Oliv. belonging to Caprifoliaceae Vent. family in the landscaping of the Right-Bank Forest-Steppe of Ukraine. The representatives of Lonicera pileata Oliv. (Cultivars Рileata, form Variegata and form Lemon Beauty) endure winter well and adapt to new climatic conditions of the planting site. The plants were found tolerant to shade, cold, pruning, and urban ecological conditions with polluted air. It has been revealed that, depending on the purpose of the landscaping object, these shrubs can perform various functions: create architectural and artistic image of the object; promote biological land reclamation along with other plants; protect against dust and noise; regulate moisture and temperature. Simultaneously, to grow plants of Lonicera pileata Oliv. successfully, it is critical to use farming techniques developed by the author scientists. When the representatives of evergreen shrubs of Lonicera pileata Oliv. are introduced in the landscaping of residential areas, they can be used to decorate landscape-gardening objects with different functional use creating landscape compositions in gardens and parks, on the plots with different exposition and slopes, as anti-erosion plants, in alpine landscapes, as freestanding shrubs or in group plantations, at the background of lawns, in flowerbeds, in alpine screen gardens, in rockeries, in freely growing and trimmed hedges, and as ground-covering plants.

MICROCLONAL PROPAGATION OF SPIRAEA JAPONICA FOR LANDSCAPING

Japanese spiraea (Spiraea japonica) is an ornamental shrub widely used in landscaping. The method of clonal micropropagation of Spiraea japonica was optimized to obtain a large number of plants from several shoots. The optimal concentrations of hormones have been established to increase multiplication and root formation. QL medium with 0,5 mg/l benzyl aminopurine (BAP) in combination with 1,0 mg/l gibberelic acid (GA); 0,01 and 1,0 mg/l indolyl butyric acid (IBA); 1,0 mg/l of naphthyl acetic acid (NAA) were tested for multiplication. For root induction, naphthyl acetic acid (NAA) was used in five doses at half the concentration of QL and MS medium. The highest multiplication of shoots (14,02±1,39) and the highest increase in shoot length (6,39) was obtained on QL medium supplemented with 0,5 mg/l BAP; 1,0 mg/l GA and IBA 0,01 mg/l. The highest rooting (100%), the maximum number of roots (6,20±0,63), the length of the longest root (4,60±0,02) was observed on ½ QL medium containing 0,1 mg/l NAA. In conclusion, for Spiraea japonica, an efficient high speed and rooting protocol is described that can be used in mass propagation.

Morpho-anatomical and biochemical changes associated with rooting of micropropagated ninebark cuttings

Ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolius) is an attractive ornamental shrub with poor rooting characteristics in some cultivars, which is a limiting factor in commercial production This study was designed to optimize rooting conditions of ninebark cuttings and to observe the effect of exogenous auxin IBA on some morpho-anatomical and biochemical changes associated with rhizogenesis in the in vitro conditions. Both auxins under study: the indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) and 1-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) gave comparable effects but the combination of ½ MS + 1 mg·L−1 IBA was the most cost effective for all rooting parameters. Anatomical changes at the cuttings’ bases during root formation were typical for woody plants and they were accelerated by auxin in the culture medium. High levels of the endogenous indole acid and hydrogen peroxide were temporarily associated with intensive cell divisions in cuttings, and the polyphenolic acid contents kept increasing during rooting above the initial levels and those in controls.

Clerodendrum chinense (Chinese glory bower).

C. chinense is a highly invasive weed in tropical and subtropical ecosystems. This species has the capacity to move into a habitat and reproduce aggressively by root suckers. C. chinense is classified as a "major weed" in Hawaii, Fiji, Western Samoa, and America Samoa (PIER, 2012) where it grows commonly along roadsides and as an ornamental shrub in gardens. This species rapidly invades pastures and plantations wherever it is planted forming dense thickets that exclude other species (Space and Flynn, 2002; Motooka et al., 2003). In the West Indies, C. chinense is included in lists of invasive species in Cuba, Puerto Rico, and US Virgin Islands (Acevedo-Rodríguez and Strong, 2012; González et al., 2012) and is classified as a widespread exotic plant in the Lesser Antilles (including Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent; Broome et al., 2007).

Lantana camara (lantana).

L. camara is a highly variable ornamental shrub, native of the neotropics. It has been introduced to most of the tropics and subtropics as a hedge plant and has since been reported as extremely weedy and invasive in many countries. It is generally deleterious to biodiversity and has been reported as an agricultural weed resulting in large economic losses in a number of countries. In addition to this, it increases the risk of fire, is poisonous to livestock and is a host for numerous pests and diseases. L. camara is difficult to control. In Australia, India and South Africa aggressive measures to eradicate L. camara over the last two centuries have been largely unsuccessful, and the invasion trajectory has continued upwards despite control measures. This species has been the target of biological control programmes for over a century, with successful control only being reported in a few instances.

Stem cutting rhizogenesis in soſtwood graſting of Philadelphus coronarius L. f. aureus nanus

Sweet mock orange f. golden dwarf (Philadelphus coronarius L. f. aureus nanus) is a promising ornamental shrub in green building within Central Russia. In the Orel Region, this species has a limited occurrence due to the lack of quality planting material, which warrants research into rhizogenesis of P. coronarius f. aureus nanus stem cuttings during soſtwood graſting. Trials were conducted during 2017-2019 in triplicate, 20 cuttings each, adhering to the common woody plant soſtwood graſting propagation technique. Two yearling types were used, side shoots and innovations. Experimental setups: 1 — control (water); 2 — aqueous indolebutyric acid (IBA) 50 mg/L at 18-h exposure; 3 — bottom cutting powdering with 0.5 g/kg active coal-IBA mixture; 4 — bottom cutting treatment with 50 mg/L IBA at 18-h exposure followed by powdering with 0.5 g/kg active coal-IBA mixture. Setup 2 (IBA 50 mg/L) rendered the highest positive effect on the rooting and reproduction of side shoot and innovation-derived stem cuttings. Te best cutting root system biometry (number and length of 1st order roots) was obtained in setup 2 with the innovation cuttings (10.50 roots of 4.53 cm) compared to the side-shoot ones (9.81 roots of 3.68 cm).

Biological Restoration of Urban Soils after De-Sealing Interventions

Most urban greening interventions involve soil de-sealing and management to enhance fertility. Management typically requires translocating fertile topsoil to the site, which comes at great environmental costs. We hypothesized that de-sealed urban soils would undergo an increase of their fertility without exogenous topsoil application. We assessed experimental plots with de-sealed soil with topsoil, and de-sealed soil without topsoil. Both treatments were vegetated with two ornamental shrub species and irrigated. Soil fertility was analyzed by chemical (total and organic carbon) and biological indicators of soils (biological quality index and microbial activities). Since metal contamination is related to urban de-sealed soil, we also monitored the concentration of Zn, Cu and Pb in soil and detected it in plant leaves. The results demonstrate that de-sealed urban soils rapidly restore their biological quality and fertility. Restoration of de-sealing soils can contribute to the recent growing interest reclamation of urban soils for improving the urban environment quality through the restoration of soil functions and related ecosystem services. Overall, the results of this study demonstrate that de-sealed soils can improve their functionality and can contribute to the recent growing interest in reclamation of urban soils for improving the urban environment quality.