C
ONDITION
OF
D
ONOR
P
LANTS
The age and physiological condition of donor plants often affect the outcome of androgenesis
experiments. In most species, the best response usually comes from the first set of flowers produced
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Plant Development and Biotechnology
by a plant. As a general rule, anthers should be cultured from buds collected as early as possible
during the course of flowering. Various environmental factors that the donor plants are exposed to
may also affect haploid plant production. Light intensity, photoperiod, and temperature have been
investigated, and at least for some species, these are found to influence the number of plants
produced from anther cultures. Specific optimum growing conditions differ from species to species
and are reviewed by Powell (1990). In general, the best results are obtained from healthy, vigorously
growing plants.