0000000000261041
AUTHOR
Sofiene B. M. Hammami
Olive embryo in vitro germination potential: Role of explant configuration and embryo structure among cultivars
The in vitro germination of excised embryos can break dormancy rapidly and shorten the time required to produce seedlings, speeding up olive breeding programmes as well as rootstock production. In this study, the in vitro germination potential of four Sicilian olive cultivars was evaluated during two years of experiments, using explants with three different morphological configurations that represent three different degrees of embryo exposure: (1) intact stoneless seeds containing the embryo, the endosperm and the seed coat (Emb+En+SC), (2) seeds without the seed coat (Emb+En) and (3) naked, isolated embryos (seed coat and endosperm both removed: Emb). Differences were found in the germinat…
Effects of tetraploidy on olive floral and fruit biology
Floral biology and fruit development were studied in Leccino Compact (LC), a polyploid olive mutant of cultivar Leccino (L). This mutant, considered a mixoploid with both diploid and tetraploid cells, has thicker leaves and fruit size similar to the diploid cultivar. So far, no information is available on its floral biology. In this study, the ploidy level of the LC fruit epicarp, analyzed by flow cytometry, was determined to be tetraploid. Pollen size distribution confirmed that most flowers were tetraploid. Morphological and histological measurements of various floral structures and fruits were carried out on the two genotypes, and LC showed larger floral structures (i.e. rachis, flower a…