Studies on the Conditions of Seed Germination of Gastrodia elata

Gastrodia elata has been cultivated using mycorrizal fungi including Armillaria mellea as an energy source (myco-hetrotrophy) because it is aphyllous and achlorophyllous archid. But the yields of G. elata have been recently decreased owing to the degeneration of spawn tuber arised from successive asexual reproduction. Therefore, this study was carried out to solve this degeneration by seed germination, namely sexual reproduction. The seed germination of G. elata was excellent on the fallen leaves medium of oak tree. The fruetification rate of the capsule of G. elata by artificial pollination was 94.1% and better than natural pollination. The living weight of capsules of G. elata suitable for seeds germination was above 31 mg. The middle-matured seeds and matured seeds of capules were largely germinated, while the immatured seeds was small germinated. The storage temperature of the cropped capsules suitable for a favorable seed germination was and the storage period of it was one month.