Effect of 6-benzylaminopurine and coconut water on shoot multiplication of Heliconia chartacea 'Sexy Pink'

We aimed to evaluate the influence of different concentrations of cytokinin 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) and coconut water on the in vitro propagation of Heliconia chartacea 'Sexy Pink'. Apical shoots were cultivated in MS medium supplemented with indole-3-asetic acid (IAA), BAP and coconut water. At the end of three subcultures, the highest rate of propagation was achieved in the medium supplemented with 8.9 μM BAP plus 100 mL L-1 coconut water with 3.3 shoots explant-1. The lowest multiplication rate was observed in the medium with 17.8 μM BAP (1.1 shoots explant-1). The evaluation of these traits allowed us to conclude that using MS medium supplemented with low BAP and coconut water concentration it is possible to obtain satisfactory levels of propagation for H. chartacea 'Sexy Pink'