In Vitro Haploid Production—A Fast and Reliable Approach for Crop Improvement - Crop Improvement Under Adverse Conditions - page 186

Fig. 8.2 a Six-week-old anther culture of tea, showing longitudinal rupturing of anther walls
(220X). b 10-week-old anther culture of tea. Note the emergence of calli from inside the anther
walls (90X). c Embryogenesis occurring in anther-derived callus of tea, after eight weeks of cul-
ture. Embryos at various stages of development can be seen in the Fig. (4.5X). d A germinated
embryo of tea (6X)
4.3 Coffea spp (Family: Rubiaceae)
The coffee plant is a woody perennial, evergreen, dicotyledon that grows relatively
high, therefore, more accurately described as a coffee tree. Coffee is a brewed drink
prepared from roasted seeds, called coffee beans, of the coffee plant. While there
are several different coffee species, the two main cultivated species are, Coffea ara-
bica, known as Arabica coffee accounting for 75-80 % of the world's production
and Coffea canephora , known as Robusta coffee, accounting for about 20 % of the
total production. Genetic improvement of coffee, being an important commercial
crop, is essential for improving the production and quality of coffee. Development
of haploids via anther culture facilitates the production of homozygous plants in one
generation and opens the way for new breeding strategies.