Investigation on possibility of cryopreservation of Eucalyptus microtheca seeds

The aim of this study was to investigate the possibility of cryopreservation of Eucalyptus microtheca seeds at -196 ºC, using Liquid Nitrogen (LN). Before transferring the seeds into LN, three pre-treatments including Plant Vitrification Solution 2 (PVS2), Desiccation and Glycerol 30% was applied. The treated seeds transferred into LN for period of one week. The seeds removed from the LN, subjected to heat shock (+42 ºC) for 2 minutes, blotted and transferred both onto moist paper in petri dishes and pots, filled with soil and pit moss. The petri dishes and pots, transferred into germinator (+24 ºC) or greenhouse (+20ºC), respectively. Subsequent of cryopreservation period, seed germination and recovery was high, there were no significant differences between cryopreserved and control seeds in germinator and greenhouse conditions. Further more, there were no adverse effect or abnormality observed in seedlings developed from cryopreserved seeds. Results showed that, long-term preservation of E. microtheca seeds under LN (cryopreservation) is promising