Implementation of garlic cryopreservation techniques in the national plant germplasm system

The USDA-ARS National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS) maintains more than 200 Allium sativum (garlic) accessions at the Western Regional Plant Introduction Station in Pullman, WA. All accessions must be grown out in the field annually since garlic plants from these accessions do not reliably produce seeds and bulbs do not store well. Shoot tips excised from garlic cloves can be successfully cryopreserved using either Plant Vitrification Solution 2 (PVS2; 15 percent v/v DMSO, 15 percent v/v ethylene glycol, 30 percent v/w glycerol, 0.4 M sucrose) or Plant Vitrification Solution 3 (PVS3; 50 percent v/w sucrose, 50 percent v/w glycerol). We compared regrowth of shoot tips representing diverse garlic germplasm after exposure to either PVS2 or PVS3 during the cryopreservation procedure. At the USDA-ARS National Center for Genetic Resources Preservation, a component of the NPGS, we consider accessions successfully preserved if a minimum of 40 percent of explants exhibit regrowth after liquid nitrogen exposure and at least 60 viable shoot tips remain in long-term storage. Ten of twelve diverse garlic accessions were successfully cryopreserved using either PVS2 or PVS3 as cryoprotectants. Five genotypes had the best post liquid nitrogen regrowth after exposure to PVS2, four genotypes had the best regrowth after exposure to PVS3, and three genotypes performed equally well using either cryoprotectant solution. This project is part of an ongoing program to cryopreserve accessions of NPGS clonal crop collections.