The concept came into practical in 1970s. The term artificial seed was coined by Murashige. It is also known by other names like manufactured seeds, synthetic seed. Though Murashige proposed encapsulation of somatic embryos to produce synthetic seed, the concept was further advanced by Redenbaugh et.al. (Plant Genetics Incorporation, California) and Kitoo and Janick (Purdue University). Redenbaugh et al. (1988) patented this artificial seed technology.
What is Artificial Seed? – Definition
Artificial or synthetic or manufactured seed is encapsulated plant propagule (somatic embryo / shoot bud) in a suitable matrix, containing substances like nutrients, growth regulators, herbicides, insecticides, fungicides and mycorrhizae which will allow and help it to grow into a complete plantlet.
A typical synthetic seed has following parts
- plant propagule (somatic embryo or shoot bud)
- Matrix (synthetic gametophyte)
- Seed shell
The concept of artificial seed technology has been applied, commercially and successfully in crops like Azadirachta indica, some orchids (Dendrobium, Spathoglottis plicata, Cymbidium, Phalaenopsis ), Alfalfa, Gossypium hirsutum, and Santalum album.
There are many other things to know about this artificial seed technology. Those are as follows
Artificial Seed Production
The first one is how these seeds are manufactured? Visit Artificial Seed Production for the information on this topic. Here we will discuss desiccated and hydrated system and general procedure for artificial seed production.
Advantages of Synthetic Seed
To know what are the various uses and advantages of such seeds visit link advantages and uses of artificial seeds. This page contains sufficient information on the topic.