The Anthurium andraeanum Uder Intermitten Mist
Elly Kesumawati
Faculty of Agriculture Departement of Agrotechnology, Syiah Kuala University
Banda Aceh, Aceh Province, Indonesia. * Corresponding author: Faculty of Agriculture Jl.Tgk.Hasan Krueng Kalee, Kopelma Darussalam,Banda Aceh 23111, Aceh Province, Indonesia. Tel.: +0651-7552223; fax: +065-17555269
E-mail: ekesumawati@yahoo.com
Abstract
Photosynthesis is the fundamental basis in green plants, and the principal organ of photosynthesis is leaf. On the basis of water requirements or adaptations, as angiosperm leaves, Anthuriums require abundant soil water and relatively humid atmosphere. To identify the morphological characteristic of leaves in Anthurium, the transverses section was conducted. Two factors were tested in this experiment: 1) mist treatment (intermittent mist and control/without mist) and 2) the type of medium planting (bark and rockwool). For observation on microscopic differences, the leaves were put on the Auto Tissue Processor ROTEX and embedded the sample in a Hardener Resin (Technovit 7100), then the block-samples were sectioned in the Microtom machine at 5um. The results of transverses section showed that the leaves of Anthurium with intermittent mist treatment, under both rock wool and bark medium thicker than control. In this experiment, the intermittent mist treatment affected the leaf structure of Anthurium andraenum. The intercellular space with connected to the outer atmosphere through the stomata was drastically increased by intermittent mist treatmentwhich promoted transpiration, rapid gas exchange and photosynthesis.
Keywords: Anthurium, leaves, transverses section, intermittent mist, bark, rockwool