Habenaria janellehayneana Choltco, Moloney, & Yong Gee (Orchidaceae) is a lithophytic orchid with striking pink flowers that is endemic to Phitsanulok Province, northern Thailand. Only a few populations of this species are found in Phu Hin Rong Kla National Park. To mai
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Habenaria janellehayneana Choltco, Moloney, & Yong Gee (Orchidaceae) is a lithophytic orchid with striking pink flowers that is endemic to Phitsanulok Province, northern Thailand. Only a few populations of this species are found in Phu Hin Rong Kla National Park. To maintain rare plant species in ex situ collections thereby preventing extinctions, along with the aim of mass propagation for ornamental reasons, it is crucial that suitable propagation methods are developed. In this paper, we describe protocols for the asymbiotic and symbiotic germination of H. janellehayneiana. Of the four growing media tested, germination percentages were greatest on ½ VW (18.97%), followed by ½ MS (14.20%), MS (12.46%), and VW (11.93%) at 16 weeks, and protocorm development was most advanced (stage 4) within 10 weeks. Of the three plant growth regulators tested, including 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP), gibberellic acid (GA), and thidiazuron (TDZ), at 0, 1, 3, and 5 mg/L concentrations, 1 mg/L BAP significantly enhanced seed germination (P <0.05) when compared to the control (8.47%). For symbiotic seed germination, two non-mycorrhizal endophytic fungi isolates of the genera Aspergillus and Colletotrichum increased seed germination by 14.03% and 11.00% respectively, when compared to the control (6.15%). These findings demonstrate that it is possible to germinate the seeds of H. janellehayneana via both asymbiotic and symbiotic method, with a symbiotic approach providing the best outcomes, and this could assist in the conservation of this and other rare terrestrial orchids, as well as increase their value in the ornamental market.
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