Introduction and establishment of apricot in vitro through regeneration of shoots from meristem tips

Summary  In this study different aspects of the in vitro introduction and establishment of apricot cultivars were investigated through meristem tip culture. The best time to introduce the meristems of ‘Canino’ was when buds were starting to swell. Various plant growth regulators were used at different concentrations on four distinct apricot cultivars to promote the development of the meristems to shoots which could then be micropropagated. Very diverse results were obtained depending on the genotype. In general, meristems did not survive without N⁶-benzyladenine. Concentrations of gibberellic acid from 2 to 4 mg 1⁻¹ (5.8–11.4 μM) promoted explant elongation. This step was critically important to obtain apricot shoots large enough to be transferred to proliferation medium.