Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2014) 3(10) 823-829 823 Original Research Article Studies on reproductive parts of flower and palynology of Gladiolus (Gladiolus L.) varieties Akansha, Ranjana, Satish Kumar, Shilpi Singh, Rajat R. Rastogi and R.K. Roy* CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India *Corresponding author ABSTRACT Introduction Gladiolus (Gladiolus L.) is an important floral crop grown in India commercially for the production of cut-flowers. In India about hundreds of varieties are available. There is wide variation in flower colour as well as other floral structures among the varieties. Palynology refers the studies on morphological structure of pollen grains (Kallajxhiu, 2014). In higher plants pollen have a unique morphology which is considered as a genetically stable character. Therefore studies on pollen grains are helpful in the identification of varieties. Pollen structure especially aperture and exine ornamentation is an important character for assessing the relationship, taxonomic and cytological status of varieties (Domez & Isik, 2008; Hanif, 2013). It was observed that there is morphological diversity and variability in pollen grains besides variability in androecium and gynoecium both in size and colour. Therefore, it was decided to undertake studies on palynology and diversity of reproductive parts of gladiolus. Materials and Methods In present experiment corms (4-5 cm) of thirty five leading varieties was planted 30 x 20 cm apart accommodating 25 corms in one bed (1.5 x 1.0 m). The experiment was conducted in the Botanic Garden, CSIR- N.B.R.I, during 2011-12 and 2012-13 in randomized block design with three replications. The standard package and ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 3 Number 10 (2014) pp. 823-829 http://www.ijcmas.com Keywords Gladiolus, Pollen, Androecium, Gynoecium, Morphology Gladiolus (Gladiolus L.) belong to the family Iridaceae and is an important crop for cut-flower trade in India. A large number of varieties are grown commercially. There is great variation in reproductive structures of the flower among the varieties. The variability exists with respect to quantitative characters (length of androecium, filament, anther, style, stigma lobe, angle of filament to anther, pollen size) and qualitative characters (pollen shape, anther colour, androecium and gynoecium colour). These variations were recorded by studying morphological characters among the 35 varieties of Gladiolus. All varieties showed significant difference and concluded as genetically controlled. The observations on various parameters helped to characterize all the varieties for proper identification in a scientific way.