Abstract

The woody shrub, Itea virginica L., Virginia sweetspire, has recently increased in popularity due to its multiple seasons of interest in the landscape. In this study, we investigated micropropagation as a means to produce this plant. Combinations of BA (1, 4, and 10 μM) and NAA (0.01, 0.1, and 1.0 μM) were evaluated for in vitro shoot induction in Itea virginica L. ‘Henry's Garnet’ on a Murashige and Skoog medium. The best combination of BA and NAA (4 μM and 0.1 μM) yielded an average of 7.9 microshoots per explant for ‘Henry's Garnet’. When dipped in a common auxin-containing, commercial rooting formulation, microshoots rooted ex vitro within four weeks. Tissue-culture produced plantlets of I. virginica ‘Henry's Garnet’ flowered one year after removal from culture.