In vitro somatic embryogenesis from callus culture of the timber yielding treeHardwickia binata Roxb

Somatic embryogenesis was achieved in callus cultures derived from immature cotyledonary explants ofHardwickia binata Roxb., a multipurpose leguminous tree, on semisolid modified Murashige and Skoog's (mMS) medium containing 2900 mg/l potassium nitrate (KNO3) supplemented with 4.64 µM kinetin (Kn) and 5.37µM a-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA). Somatic embryos proliferated rapidly after transfer to MS basal medium supplemented with 2052.6 µM L-glutamine and 0.084 µM gibberellic acid (GA3). Maturation of somatic embryos was achieved on half-strength MS basal medium supplemented with 1.23 µM IBA and 2% (w/v) sucrose. Histological studies confirmed different developmental stages of somatic embryogenesis inHardwickia binata.