Comparative Study of Thin Cell Layer and Whole Nodal Segment Cultures of Winged Bean [Psophocarpus tetragonolobus (L.)Dc.

As Winged bean (Psophocarpus tetragonolobus) is seasonal and grows only during short day regimes and there is very low seed germination due to the hard seed coat, in vitro culture techniques are required for the large scale propagation of the plant. Legumes in general and winged bean in specific are recalcitrant to tissue culture protocols. The present study suggests the suitability of thin cell layer explants for the rapid propagation of the plant. It was observed that the thin cell layer explants are superior over the whole tissue explants in response. BAP (5 mg/l) containing MS media was found to instigate maximum shoot initiation from the thin cell layer explants.