PROPAGATION OF NEW BLACKBERRY CULTIVARS FOR PRODUCING CERTIFIED PROPAGATION MATERIAL

The purpose of this research was to study the behaviour of two new Romanian thorn blackberry cultivars DAR 24 and DAR 8 in process of micropropagation, compared with Darrow cultivar usually commercially micropropagated in our laboratory. Due to several drawbacks of the conventional propagation of Rubus, the efficiency of micropropagation was tested in order to obtain high quality planting material and to introduce rapidly these new cultivars in a certification program. Thorn blackberry cultivars DAR 8 and DAR 24 with resistance to winter colds was successfully micropropagated. Blackberry plants were found without virus infection after biological and ELISA tests. Axillary buds from the branches in full growth were used as the initial explants. After four weeks of growth, aseptic cultures was established on MS basal mineral salts, LS vitamins with 0.3 mg/l BAP, 0.1mg/l GA3 and 0.001mg/l NAA. The rate of successfully established cultures was on average 65.11%. Good proliferation of the regenerated shoots was obtained on the same medium composition used for initiation phase, whereas medium MS with mineral salts reduced to ½ and LS vitamins with 0.1 mg/l IBA and 0.1 mg/l GA3 was used in the rooting phase. Dar 24 and Dar 8 cultivars responded by good rates of micropropagation on medium culture B as compared to control Darrow cultivar, even if the obtained shoots length was lower than on medium A. The statistical analysis reveled that the highest MR (20.66 plantlets/explant) was obtained for Dar 24. In this case the length of shoots was 1.92 cm. The highest rooting percentages (over 85%) were obtained with shoots multiplied on medium B. High quality of rooted plants induced a high percentage of acclimatization of cultivar Dar 8, 86.36% under mist system in green house whereas the percentage of acclimatization of cultivar Dar 24 was lower, 51.85%