Integrative conservation approaches for the endemic seasonal ethnomedicinal plant Iphigenia magnifica

Iphigenia magnifica Ansari and R. S. Rao (Colchicaceae) is a potential seasonal medicinal herb that grows on plateaus and open grasslands with well-drained soil on gentle slopes. This plant has remarkable therapeutic potential and is used in the Indian medicinal system to treat various diseases. Currently, this species is on the verge of extinction due to the unregulated exploitation of traditional medicine and various anthropogenic activities. Seed dormancy and low seed germination rates limit natural propagation. For the first time, the effectiveness of in vivo pre-sowing and in vitro treatment with various growth regulators was evaluated to enhance seed germination and induce healthy corms. Sulfuric acid scarified seeds for 20 s significantly improved seed germination with 66.7±2.7 % germination, 8.53±0.32 of germination speed, 262.98±15.78 of vigor index (VI), and 8.33±0.33 of emergence index (EI). In this study, we also confirmed that scarified seeds treated with sulfuric acid for 20 s and cultured on half-strength Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium containing 1.5 µM GA3 proved superior for breaking residual dormancy and enhancing the germination (99±0.58 %) and seedling performance; hence, it can be used for the conservation of I. magnifica . Corms cultured on MS medium containing 2.5 µM GA3 showed maximum sprouting (98.67±0.33 %). Plantlets derived from seeds and corms were successfully acclimatized under natural conditions, confirming a stable protocol for the multiplication, conservation, and restoration of the endemic seasonal medicinal plant, I. magnifica . This protocol can also be used for sustainable utilization of these active metabolites.