Paper Title
In vitro Shoot Induction and Multiplication of Buchanania lanzan (Spreng): A Commercially Important Tree

Abstract
Buchanania lanzan (Family Anacardiaceae) known as char or chironji, is a commercially useful tree species of India. Its seeds are used as dry fruits and sold at the rate Rs. 600-2000/-Per Kilogram. The seeds are the major source of natural regeneration. The major problem in the reforestation of B. lanzan is the low percentage germination of seeds due to fungal contamination associated with storage of seeds. The seeds exposed to sunlight fail to germinate and soon lose their viability. Another basic problem is the presence of hard seed coat which leads to low germinating capability. In forest biotechnology, micro propagation is a promising choice for mass propagation of superior forest tree genotypes. The present research work was undertaken with a view to solve the above problem. The ripe fruits were collected from three different healthy trees of chironji located in TFRI campus. The hard seed coat was removed manually and seeds were collected after depulping of fruits. They were surface sterilized by using 0.1% HgCl2 solution for 4-5 minutes followed by rinsing with sterile distilled water. The different trees show significant variation for in vitro seed germination in the range of 33.33-80%. Axillary shoot proliferation through nodal segments was tried on MS medium supplemented with different concentrations (0, 0.05, 0.1 and 0.5μM) of Benzyl Adenine (BA) and Kinetin (Kn). The maximum sprouting (88.89%) was obtained in nodal segments on MS medium with 0.05 μM kinetin and 0.5 μM BA followed by 0.5 μM kinetin and 0.1 μM BA. Around 3-4 number of shoots were formed per nodal segment after 20 days of inoculation. These results will be very useful in regeneration of this commercially important tree species. Keywords - Benzyl adenine, Buchanania lanzan, Kinetin, In vitro, Significant Effect. Abbreviations - BA- 6-Benzyladenine G- Genotype HgCl2- Mercuric Chloride Kn- Kinetin (N6-Furfuryladenine) MS- Murashige and Skoog (1962) NS- Non-significant