Central Potato Research Institute, Shimla - 171 001, (HP).
1Present address: Central Institute for Sub-Tropical Horticulture, Lucknow - 226 016, (UP).
The effect of different light treatments viz., cool white fluorescent, incandescent, fluorescent + incandescent, blue, green and red on potato micropropagation was studied in cvs. Kufri Jyoti and Kufri Chandramukhi. Overall microplant growth was restricted under the combination of fluorescent and incandescent light. Incandescent light was found as good as fluorescent light in fostering optimum microplant growth. However, its effect on axillary shoot proliferation varied with the genotypes. Lanky and etiolated microshoots were developed in coloured light treatments. In blue and red lights, the cultures exhibited phototropism. Chlorophyll formation (total, a & b) in the leaves of micropropagated plants grown under incandescent light was at par with the fluorescent control, but differed significantly under coloured light spectra. For both microplant growth and chlorophyll formation, the genotypes showed differential responses.
