Comparisons of Morphological and Chromosomal Characteristics of <i>Phalaenopsis</i> Mini Type Cultivars

The purpose of the study is to assess morphological and chromosomal comparison of Mini type Phalanopsis ‘KS Little Gem’ and four domestic market available cultivars (‘Queen Beer’, ‘Tony Pink’, ‘Vaviche’ and ‘Rorens’). ‘KS Little Gem’ had the highest number of leaves (14.9), while the other four types had fewer than ten. The longest leaf length was 21.5㎝ for ‘Tony Pink’, followed by 16.2㎝, 18.0㎝ and 17.5㎝ for ‘Queen Beer’, ‘Rorens’ and ‘Vaviche’ respectively. The length and width of the petals of ‘KS Little Gem’ were 29.5㎜ and 25.6㎜ respectively indicating a round shape flower compared to other cultivars. When the flower lifespan of ‘KS Little Gem’ was compared to four cultivars of the domestic market, it was found that it had a 123-day shelf life, which was twice longer than that of the four cultivars. According to chromosome analysis ‘KS Little Gem’, ‘Rorens’, ‘Tony Pink,' and ‘Vaviche’ were tetraploid (2n = 4x = 76) while ‘Queen Beer’ was diploid (2n = 2x = 38). The estimated DNA content of ‘KS Little Gem’, ‘Rorens’, ‘Tony Pink’ and ‘Vaviche’ had 4918.4, 4794.2, 4705.2 and 4964.3 Mbp respectively, which were roughly double than that of P. cornu-cervi (control, 2n = 2x = 38). However, ‘Queen Beer’, had an estimated DNA content of 2802.2Mbp, similar to that of P. cornu-cervi. The morphological features, genome size and chromosomal data reported in these studies can be used by breeders to create more efficient Phalaenopsis breeding programs.