Articles
Reliable pollen viability and germination methods for rose breeding success
Article number
1461_10
Pages
93 – 104
Language
English
Abstract
Accurate assessment of pollen viability and germination is essential for optimizing breeding programs and improving efficiency in terms of time, cost, and labor.
Since pollen fertility directly influences seed formation, selecting appropriate evaluation methods is critical.
However, ideal germination protocols for rose pollen remain insufficiently defined in the literature.
This study aimed to identify the most reliable methods for assessing rose pollen viability and germination.
Pollen samples from three rose cultivars were analyzed using five viability tests (IKI, TTC, LCB, SFN, and AST) and eight germination tests, including liquid and solid media in hanging-drop and Petri dish agar methods.
In total, 13 viability and germination tests were compared.
Viability and germination tests were performed on both fresh and heat-treated (80°C, 48 h) pollen.
A total of 1,000 pollen grains per cultivar were analyzed.
Results revealed significant variation in pollen viability and germination rates depending on the cultivar and method used.
TTC was identified as the most reliable viability test due to its ability to exclude non-viable pollen.
Furthermore, polyethylene glycol (PEG)-containing liquid media yielded the highest germination rates, whereas solid media were found to be inadequate.
The PCA biplot showed that the TTC test, together with the S-1 and S-4 germination media were associated with high pollen viability and germination success.
This study highlights the importance of accurate viability and germination tests to improve breeding efficiency.
It recommends replacing unreliable methods (e.g., IKI test) with TTC for more consistent results.
Additionally, accurate testing can facilitate the selection of climate-resilient rose cultivars, supporting sustainable breeding strategies.
Since pollen fertility directly influences seed formation, selecting appropriate evaluation methods is critical.
However, ideal germination protocols for rose pollen remain insufficiently defined in the literature.
This study aimed to identify the most reliable methods for assessing rose pollen viability and germination.
Pollen samples from three rose cultivars were analyzed using five viability tests (IKI, TTC, LCB, SFN, and AST) and eight germination tests, including liquid and solid media in hanging-drop and Petri dish agar methods.
In total, 13 viability and germination tests were compared.
Viability and germination tests were performed on both fresh and heat-treated (80°C, 48 h) pollen.
A total of 1,000 pollen grains per cultivar were analyzed.
Results revealed significant variation in pollen viability and germination rates depending on the cultivar and method used.
TTC was identified as the most reliable viability test due to its ability to exclude non-viable pollen.
Furthermore, polyethylene glycol (PEG)-containing liquid media yielded the highest germination rates, whereas solid media were found to be inadequate.
The PCA biplot showed that the TTC test, together with the S-1 and S-4 germination media were associated with high pollen viability and germination success.
This study highlights the importance of accurate viability and germination tests to improve breeding efficiency.
It recommends replacing unreliable methods (e.g., IKI test) with TTC for more consistent results.
Additionally, accurate testing can facilitate the selection of climate-resilient rose cultivars, supporting sustainable breeding strategies.
Authors
T. Kılıç, E. Doğan Meral, Ş.B. Akça Yılmaz, E. Kırbay, V. Aydın, S. Tuna Koçoğlu, S. Kazaz
Keywords
Rosa sp., TTC test, polyethylene glycol, hanging-drop method, heat-treated pollen
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