S.J. Prejith Raj, A. Sheena*, Beena Thomas, M. Rafeekher and Pratheesh P. Gopinath
Instructional Farm, Kerala Agricultural University, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, Thiruvananthapuram, 695522, Kerala, India. Corresponding e-mail: sheena2sa@yahoo.co.in
Abstract: Pollen morphology of
Hibiscus rosa sinensis cultivars ‘Playboy’ and ‘Gelia Castillo’ were studied under light and scanning electron microscope. The two cultivars exhibited spheroidal pollen with pantoporate aperture and spiny surfaces under a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The pollen diameter of the cv ‘Playboy’ and cv ‘Gelia Castillo’ were 116.0 ?m and 129.6 ?m, respectively. The pollen apertures of both the cultivars were similar with round shape but in the cv. ‘Gelia Castillo’, the aperture was partially covered with an exine layer. The cv ‘Gelia Castillo’ exhibited a pollen fertility of 93.84%, whereas the cv ‘Playboy’ exhibited a pollen fertility of 88.57%. This study offers important information regarding the pollen traits of
H. rosa sinensis cultivars ‘Playboy’ and ‘Gelia Castillo’. Due to their attractive floral characters and high pollen fertility, both cultivars can be utilized as good male parents in crop improvement programs for breeding novel hibiscus varieties.
