Abstract
Potted plants of Tradescantia ohiensis KU 7 clone (heterozygous for flower color) were exposed to 60Co gamma rays and/or scattering radiation in the gamma field of the National Institute of Radiation Breeding. Somatic mutation rates were scored in the stamen hairs for 16 days, and the genetic effects of direct gamma rays and scattering radiation were compared. Scattering radiation was proved to be about 27 or 25% more efficient in inducing somatic mutations than the direct gamma rays from 60Co source.
