Micropropagation of adult birch trees: production and field performance

We compared the growth of trees produced by micropropagation from nodal stem sections or callus tissue of a 20-year-old silver birch (Betula pendula Roth) tree with that of seedlings; growth was monitored for 17 months in pots followed by six years in the field. Micropropagated trees from both nodal stem sections and callus tissue grew at a similar rate to seedling trees and no obvious mutant types were observed. However, micropropagated trees were more uniform in height and trunk girth than seedling trees and more than 80% flowered within three years of field planting, whereas only 39% of seedling trees flowered within this time. Micropropagated trees had less bark fissuring, a mature characteristic, than seedling trees.