Cytogenetical Studies in the Genus Cymbopogon Spreng

II. Meiotic studies in six species and their varieties

Abstract

Meiotic studies in six Indian Cymbopogon species and their varieties/chemotypes were made from pollen mother cells. The investigated taxa included 5 diploids (2n=20), one tetraploid (2n=40) and two hexaploids (2n=60). Both diploids as well as hexaploids exhibited fairly normal meiosis with ten and thirty bivalents formation, respectively. However, the tetraploid species (C. martinii var. sofia, 2n=40) showed peculiar meiosis by forming multivalent configurations like quadrivalents and hexavalents, suggesting a segmental polyploid nature.