THE EFFECT OF MATURE COCONUT WATER ON IN-VIVO MACRO PROPAGATION OF MUSA SPECIES

ABSTRACT

Banana and plantain (Musa spp.) are among the most crucial staple crops in many tropical and subtropical regions. However, one of the major constraints to the production of banana and plantain is the unavailability of healthy planting materials at planting time. This constraint could be resolved using the cloning of planting materials via the in-vivo macro-propagation technique. The objective of this present study was to evaluate the effect of mature coconut water on in-vivo macro-propagation of banana and plantain. The treatments included 8ml of mature coconut water, 12ml of mature coconut and 10ml of distilled water which was used as control. The experiment was a 3 x 4 factorial arrangement laid out in a Completely Randomized Design with three replications. Results indicated that 8ml mature coconut water greatly influenced the in-vivo macro-propagation of cultivars of Musa spp with weight of plantlet, shoot height, shoot collar girth and plantlet survival percentage showing the highest significance. Also, 8ml mature coconut water in combination with FHIA25 had the highest number of shoot height, followed by 12ml mature coconut water in combination with Benin Local. Consequently, it is advised that coconut water be used in the production of cultivars of Musa spp especially as it is easily accessible to local farmers.