Ex vitro symbiotic germination of the seeds of Anacamptis coriophora (L.) R.M. Bateman, Pritgeon & M.W. Chase and Orchis anatolica Boiss.

Rapid destruction of orchid habitats and over-collection of the tubers are the greatest threats to orchid diversity. To counter these threats, it is necessary to grow orchid tubers easily and quickly for economic reasons and to reintroduce populations in the habitats of species that are facing extinction. This study demonstrates a simple viability test for orchid seeds and the ex vitro symbiotic seed germination of temperate orchids. Viability of the seeds of two orchid species, Anacamptis coriophora and Orchis anatolica, was determined without any chemical treatment of the seed coat. Seeds were incubated in packs in moist cocopeats for five days during which seed viability tests being performed daily. The highest viability rate was found in the seeds that were incubated for five days (64.33% for O. coriophora; 67.19% for O. anatolica). The seeds of these orchids were sown non-axenically into a pre-inoculated soil mixture with a compatible fungus, Ceratobasidium sp. AG A. The seeds of both the orchids germinated 18 days after sowing. Leafy and rooted seedlings developed two months after sowing and the first tubers of both the species developed seven months later.