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Pollen Germination and Morphology of Black Pepper (Piper nigrum L.)

Author: Pooja S., Sreekala G. S. and Vijaykumar B. Narayanapur

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Abstract

The pollen morphology and germination of black pepper var. Panniyur 1 was studied using Stereomicroscopic and Scanning Electron Microscopic (SEM). The number of anthers in each flower was four and was uniform in all fifty flowers. Anther dehiscence occurred from 11 am and continued till 4 pm and was maximum at 2-3 pm. The number of pollen grains per inflorescence varied from 5,01,500 - 7,00,000. The pollen grains are monosulcate with the mean polar diameter of 10.414 µm and the mean equatorial diameter of 6.309 µm having an exine thickness of 924.8 nm. Acetocarmine test revealed that 91 per cent of the pollen were fertile. The pollen viability percentage by TTC stain and IKI stain was 91.03and 92.4 per cent respectively. In vitro germination in Brewbakers- Kwack medium at 5, 10, 20 and 30 per cent sucrose showed highest pollen germination at 5 per cent sucrose.

Keywords

Anther dehiscence, Pollen viability, Pollen fertility, in vitro germination, Black pepper.

Conclusion

The pollen grain size varies from variety to variety. In the present investigation, the polar and equatorial diameter and exine thickness of pollen grain of Panniyur -1 variety of black pepper were 10.414µm, 6.309µm, 924.8µm respectively. Ninety-one per cent of pollen were identified as fertile using acetocarmine stain. The pollen viability of Paniyur-1 variety was found 91.03 and 92.4 per cent in TTC and IKI methods respectively. The maximum pollen grain germination was observed in in vitro at 5 and 10 per cent sucrose concentration. This was further confirmed with the in vivo germination tests in the field. The pollen morphology thus deciphered can be helpful in studying the black pepper relationships at the morphological and genetic levels and will also help in rational selection, comparison and improvement of this important agronomic crop.

References

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How to cite this article

Pooja, S.; Sreekala, G. S. and Narayanapur, V. B. (2021). Pollen Germination and Morphology of Black Pepper (Piper nigrum L.). Biological Forum – An International Journal, 13(4): 1134-1140.