Paclobutrazol and Sucrose Boost tuber growth and acclimatization in potted Calla Lily through tissue culture

Commercial micropropagation of Zantedeschia , commonly known as Calla lily, is a valuable and economically viable method for propagation. However, successful in vitro cultivation depends on the proper formation of tubers, as plants without well-developed tubers have limited chances of survival during subsequent transfer and acclimatization stages. The objective of this research was to investigate the impact of different concentrations of sucrose, cycocel, and paclobutrazol on microtuber size and production in potted Zantedeschia cultivars, namely 'Sun Club,' 'Orania,' and 'Zazu,' under in vitro conditions. The study was conducted as two separate factorial experiments using a completely randomized design. In the first experiment, the Zantedeschia cultivars were exposed to various concentrations of sucrose (3%, 6%, and 9%) combined with different concentrations of cycocel (0, 150, 200, and 250 mg/l). The second experiment involved the same sucrose concentrations combined with paclobutrazol (0, 0.5, 1, and 1.5 mg/l). The evaluation included the measurement of tuber size, tuber weight, plant height, and acclimatization percentage. Results revealed that the Zantedeschia cultivars exhibited diverse responses in terms of tuber size and acclimatization percentage under the controlled conditions. The effects of the applied treatments varied depending on the concentrations and interactions among the different factors. Notably, a 6% concentration of sucrose showed superior performance in microtuber production and other measured traits. Cycocel at a concentration of 200 mg/l and paclobutrazol at a concentration of 0.5 mg/l showed improved performance compared to other concentrations when combined with 6% sucrose. Notably, the 6% sucrose concentration consistently demonstrated superior performance in microtuber production and other measured traits. Additionally, when combined with 0.5 mg/l paclobutrazol, it resulted in significantly higher survival rates (Sun Club: 86%, Orania: 80%, Zazu: 91%) and larger tuber diameters (Sun Club: 48.72 mm, Orania: 50.41 mm, Zazu: 44.06 mm) under both in vitro conditions and after acclimatization, compared to the control group. These findings contribute to the advancement of micropropagation techniques for Zantedeschia and may have implications for commercial production.