ANATOMY AND MORPHOLOGY OF MICROPROPAGATED-ACCLIMATIZED PLANTS OF Agave potatorum Zucc. FERTIGATED IN NURSERY

Abstract

Agave potatorum is a wild species collected without management plans; thus, this research proposes in vitro propagation. This research evaluated morphological and anatomical characteristics of micropropagated-acclimatized A. potatorum plants fertigated with different nutrient amounts in the nursery. In 2014 and 2015, a nursery experiment was established and contained 180 micropropagated-acclimatized plants separated into six groups of 30 plants. Each group was fertigated twice a week for eight months with one of six dilutions of Steiner’s universal solution (5, 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 %). After eight months, leaf area (LA), area of the cross-section of the largest leaf in its basal part (CSA), number of vascular bundles (VB), dry biomass accumulated above ground (AG = stem + leaves), dry biomass in the root (R) and total biomass (T = AG + R) were evaluated. Plants grew in direct relation to the amount of nutrient they received. Plants fertigated at 5 and 100 % concentration of nutrients, had respectively: 529.4 and 965.6 cm² of LA, 1.4 and 2.0 cm² of CSA, 201.5 and 263.5 of VB; 18.9 and 37.3 g of AG, 8.1 and 12.0 g of R, and 27 and 49 g of T.