Morphological Characteristics and Drought Tolerance of the Diploid and Tetraploid Angelonia angustifolia

Abstract

Angelonia (Angelonia angustifolia) is an important potted flowering plant or bedding plant widely used in tropical and subtropical regions. However, most Angelonia cultivars have relatively small flowers and demonstrate limited drought tolerance in root-restricted environments such as small containers. Polyploid plants often exhibit larger flowers and enhanced drought tolerance. In this study, Angelonia ‘Serena White’ seeds and ‘Serena Purple’ seedlings were treated with 0.1% and 0.2% colchicine to induce polyploid lines, respectively. The resulting tetraploids had larger pollen and flowers, along with thicker, greener leaves distinguished by serrated edges, longer stomata, and lower stomatal density compared with diploid ‘Serena White’ and ‘Serena Purple’ plants. Both diploid and tetraploid plants subjected to a 20% volumetric water content (VWC) treatment exhibited smaller leaves, higher SPAD-502 readings, and a decreased number of flowers compared with those subjected to 40% VWC treatment. Moreover, tetraploids had higher photosynthetic rates than diploids under both 20% and 40% VWC conditions. When grown in 0.8-L containers, tetraploid plants required fewer watering events and had thicker, erect stems with larger flowers than diploids, even under a 20% VWC treatment. Colchicine-induced polyploidization presents a promising method to potentially enhance drought tolerance in angelonia.