RESEARCH ARTICLE
Flower Initiation Pattern, Developmental Stages, and Seed Morphology of Paraphalaenopsis Labukensis P.S. Shim, A. Lamb & C.L. Chan, An Endangered Orchid in Sabah
Heira Vanessa Nelson1, 2, Jualang Azlan Gansau3, Nor Amirah Shamsudin1, Nor Azizun Rusdi1, *
Article Information
Identifiers and Pagination:
Year: 2024Volume: 18
E-location ID: e187433152307040
Publisher ID: e187433152307040
DOI: 10.2174/18743315-v17-230726-2023-18
Article History:
Received Date: 15/03/2023Revision Received Date: 08/06/2023
Acceptance Date: 13/06/2023
Electronic publication date: 29/01/2024
Collection year: 2024
open-access license: This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0), a copy of which is available at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
Background
Paraphalaenopsis labukensis P.S. Shim, A. Lamb & C.L. Chan is a monopodial epiphytic species that can only be found in Sabah. P. labukensis orchids have unique characteristics in that it has a long floral lifespan as compared to other orchid species. The flower developmental pattern of P. labukensis greatly influenced capsule formation and seed maturation.
Objective
The present research was conducted to record the initiation of flower initiation, and floral morphology, and to observe the flowering and capsule development, as well as the effect of different capsule ages on asymbiotic seed germination.
Methods
A total of three individual plants of P. labukensis were observed. The flowering stages were characterized by quantitative parameters such as length of inflorescence, diameter, and length of buds, the number of flowers produced, and the length of the capsule formed. All the data were recorded through direct observation.
Results
Overall, twelve morphological landmark that define each stage of floral development was recorded. Based on the observation, P. labukensis inflorescence was asymmetric and in the shape of a panicle. The number of flowers varied among inflorescences, ranging from 3–5, that blossomed at different times. Furthermore, early capsules appeared 40–90 days after pollination (DAP). Then, 120 DAP of the capsule was selected as the most suitable capsule age for germination as it had reached its maturation period.
Conclusion
Identifying the duration of the whole flowering developmental process will aid in the production of capsules to attain a reliable and adequate seed source for in vitro seed germination.
