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Horticulturae
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Innovative Micropropagation of Horticultural and Medicinal Plants—2nd Edition
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Innovative Micropropagation of Horticultural and Medicinal Plants—2nd Edition

A special issue of Horticulturae (ISSN 2311-7524). This special issue belongs to the section "Propagation and Seeds".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2026 | Viewed by 3076

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Milana Trifunović Momčilov

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Guest Editor
Department of Plant Physiology, Institute for Biological Research “Siniša Stanković”—National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Bulevar despota Stefana 142, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia
Interests: abiotic stress; endogenous phytohormone; morphogenesis in vitro; secondary metabolites; biotechnology; plant cell; tissue; organ culture
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Biljana K. Filipović

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Plant Physiology, Institute for Biological Research “Siniša Stanković”—National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Bulevar Despota Stefana 142, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia
Interests: plant biotechnology; in vitro propagation of plants; morphogenesis in vitro; arabinogalactan proteins; specialized metabolism and metabolic engineering; plant stress responses
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Micropropagation is a plant tissue culture technique used for clonal mass propagation under aseptic and controlled conditions. The main advantage of micropropagation is the rapid multiplication of high quality, disease-free plants throughout the year, starting from a small amount of initial plant tissue. Clonally propagated plants are genetically uniform, which enables the desirable trait preservation of the chosen elite germplasm and the cultivation of high-yielding chemotypes. Tissue culture technology has been applied to the large-scale production of many economically important plants, such as horticultural, silvicultural, and medicinal plants. However, the multiplication rate can be affected by various factors and limitations. This can be overcome by the development and application of new approaches to increase the production of biomass and specialized metabolites and to reduce the overall costs, such as via novel lighting and low-cost systems, e.g., LEDs, bioreactor-based culture systems, and different elicitors (plasma treatment, etc.). Therefore, innovative tissue culture technologies can enable the development of efficient, reliable, and sustainable micropropagation protocols optimized for specific plant species. Micropropagation technology is a valuable tool for the fundamental study of basic plant developmental processes, for the screening of abiotic and biotic stresses, for the in vitro conservation of rare and endangered plant species, and for the production of specialized metabolites.

This Special Issue of Horticulturae aims to highlight innovative techniques and practices for improving the micropropagation systems of horticultural, silvicultural, and medicinal plants. Original research articles and reviews that address diverse applications of micropropagation are welcome.

Dr. Milana Trifunović Momčilov
Dr. Biljana K. Filipović
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Horticulturae is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • in vitro propagation
  • somatic embryogenesis
  • organogenesis
  • plant hormones
  • secondary metabolites
  • elicitors
  • cryopreservation
  • abiotic and biotic stresses

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Related Special Issue

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 1932 KB  
Article
Exploring the Optimal Encapsulation Matrix for Artificial Seed Production to Enhance the Ornamental Exploitation of Stachys byzantina K. Koch
by Stefanos Kostas, Chrysanthi Evangelia Katsanou, Konstantinos Bertsouklis and Stefanos Hatzilazarou
Horticulturae 2026, 12(3), 378; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae12030378 - 19 Mar 2026
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Abstract
The present study aimed to determine the optional alginate and CaCl2 concentrations in the encapsulation formulation to produce alginate beads of Stachys byzantina, thereby offering a potential alternative method for its propagation. Stem explants were derived from in vitro cultures grown [...] Read more.
The present study aimed to determine the optional alginate and CaCl2 concentrations in the encapsulation formulation to produce alginate beads of Stachys byzantina, thereby offering a potential alternative method for its propagation. Stem explants were derived from in vitro cultures grown on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 10 μM benzyladenine (BA) and were evaluated for their germination and regeneration potential after a short-term storage period (1, 2, and 3 months). Three different sodium alginate concentrations (2%, 2.5% and 3%) were used for the preparation of alginate beads. For the hardening of the alginate beads, calcium chloride dihydrate (CaCl2·2H2O) at four concentrations (50, 100, 200 and 400 mM) was employed for 35 min. The combination of 100 mM calcium chloride with sodium alginate at concentrations of 2.0%, 2.5%, or 3.0% resulted in high germination rates, ranging from 73.33% to 76.60%. However, germination rates declined with increased storage duration. Among the formulations, 2.5% sodium alginate consistently supported higher germination over time, with rates of 53.33% and 36.66% observed after 2 and 3 months of storage, respectively. The decline in germination rate was followed by an increase in bead hardness over time. The optimal encapsulation matrix composition was identified as 2.5% sodium alginate with 100 mM CaCl2, which yielded the highest regeneration rate of explants after 1, 2 and 3 months of cold storage at 4 °C. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovative Micropropagation of Horticultural and Medicinal Plants—2nd Edition)
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15 pages, 1518 KB  
Article
Effects of Serendipita Fungi and Substrate Composition on Symbiotic Germination and Seedling Development of Dendrobium officinale
by Nengqi Li, Kaifeng Tao, Jian Yue, Juan Su, Jiangyun Gao and Haiquan Huang
Horticulturae 2025, 11(12), 1489; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11121489 - 9 Dec 2025
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Abstract
The use of mycorrhizal fungi to enhance orchid seed germination and seedling growth is a promising approach for orchid propagation and conservation, but practical applications remain limited. In this study, we developed a direct seeding technique based on mycorrhizal symbiosis using Dendrobium officinale [...] Read more.
The use of mycorrhizal fungi to enhance orchid seed germination and seedling growth is a promising approach for orchid propagation and conservation, but practical applications remain limited. In this study, we developed a direct seeding technique based on mycorrhizal symbiosis using Dendrobium officinale. Seeds were inoculated with two fungal strains, Serendipita officinale (SO) and Serendipita indica (SI), individually or in combination, and cultivated on three substrates to identify optimal fungus–substrate combinations. SO achieved the highest germination rate (52.9 ± 5.6%) at 30 days on substrate 1 but declined at later stages, while SI performed best on substrate 3 at 30 days (72.3 ± 6.7%) but was less effective after 90 days. The SO and SI mixture showed strong synergistic effects on substrate 1, with peak germination (48.7 ± 5.9%) and seedling formation (45.6 ± 5.1%) at 120 days. Substrates 1 and 3 significantly outperformed 2 (p < 0.05), with 1 promoting rapid early germination and 3 favoring long-term seedling establishment. In contrast, controls without fungi showed less than 5% for all indices, confirming the necessity of symbiotic fungi. Microscopic observations revealed typical orchid mycorrhizal structures and dynamic hyphal turnover, providing histological evidence of the symbiotic mechanism. These findings establish a practical framework for mycorrhizal-assisted propagation and contribute to the ecological cultivation and conservation of D. officinale. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovative Micropropagation of Horticultural and Medicinal Plants—2nd Edition)
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14 pages, 1761 KB  
Article
In Vitro Propagation Protocol for Porlieria chilensis: Efficient Ex Vitro Rooting and Acclimatization
by Francesca Guerra, Loreto Badilla, Ricardo Cautín and Mónica Castro
Horticulturae 2025, 11(11), 1410; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11111410 - 20 Nov 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1240
Abstract
Porlieria chilensis Johnst. (guayacán), an endemic Chilean species native to the sclerophyllous forests, is experiencing a significant population decline. Typically growing as a shrub or small tree on sunny slopes and rocky soils, its populations have been severely impacted by overexploitation and habitat [...] Read more.
Porlieria chilensis Johnst. (guayacán), an endemic Chilean species native to the sclerophyllous forests, is experiencing a significant population decline. Typically growing as a shrub or small tree on sunny slopes and rocky soils, its populations have been severely impacted by overexploitation and habitat degradation, leading to its classification as Vulnerable (VU). Mature, well-developed individuals have become increasingly rare, now mostly replaced by shrubby regrowth. This study presents the first reported in vitro propagation method for P. chilensis, aimed at establishing a protocol for its mass propagation. A 92.0% survival rate was achieved for nodal segments cultured on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium after surface disinfection with 1.5% sodium hypochlorite for 15 min. Shoot elongation was successfully stimulated by supplementing the medium with 8.88 μM of 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP), resulting in an average shoot length of 6.9 cm. For ex vitro rooting, plants were transferred to 200 mL containers filled with a 2:1 (v/v) peat/perlite substrate. High rooting rates were obtained (87.5% and 93.1%) when treated with 1968 μM and 1476 μM of indole-3-butyric acid (IBA), respectively. Moreover, 89.8% of the plants survived acclimatization under controlled conditions. These results highlight the strong potential of in vitro propagation as an effective strategy for the conservation and restoration of P. chilensis populations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovative Micropropagation of Horticultural and Medicinal Plants—2nd Edition)
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