Abstract
The use of liquid-medium-based procedure relative to the solid media led to a 4.5-fold increase in the number of cotyledon-stage embryos. The most efficient system for multiplication and regeneration of somatic embryos was CP6 procedure with the media MSD40/MSD20/MSM6AC/FNL0S3S3GM. However, the rate of regeneration was lower. About 71％ of the embryos with dicotyledon were continued to develop the roots after desiccation treatment and 92％ of the germinated embryos produced shoots in 10 days. Of the four morphologically different types of embryos, dicotyledonous ones showed a high frequency of conversion, while only a few with fused and horn type cotyledon developed shoots. Mature somatic embryos were desiccated in empty petri dishes for 12-72 h. Embryo survival rate was the highest after 12 h of desiccation, but maximal germination was observed at 24 h. After desiccation, they were placed on MS medium without growth regulators for germination. Germinating embryos were transferred to small pots with vermiculite for plant regeneration. The etiolating the plants during the growth was resolved to add 1％ activated charcoal on hormone-free MS medium.
