Cinnamon is increasingly becoming an important and potential foreign exchange earner and it is the most important spice in Sri Lanka. However, currently only two selected cinnamon accessions are available in Sri Lanka. Therefore, establishment of more commercial cinnamon varieties/ cultivars with high quality and yield are required. Experiments were carried out to investigate and compare of morphological and chemical characteristics of two selected cinnamon accessions (Sri Wijaya and Sri Gemunu) and six wild cinnamon species (Cinnamomum citriodorum, Cinnamomum capparu coronde, Cinnamomum litseaefolium, Cinnamomum revulorum, Cinnamomum dubium and Cinnamomum sinharajanse). Morphological characters of flower, leaf, seed and bark, yield of bark and leaf oil, and chemical characters of leaf and bark oil were examined. Leaf morphological characters; leaf shape, type of venation, leaf apex shape, leaf length and width, petiole length and leaf area were varied among species studied. Bark color, surface texture of bark, bark odor and seed color also helped to differentiate studied species. Highest mean leaf oil percentage and bark oil percentage was obtained from C. zeylanicum (Sri Gemunu) and C. zeylanicum (Sri Wijaya) respectively. The lowest mean leaf oil percentage was obtained from C. citriodorum and the lowest mean bark oil percentage was obtained from C. dubium. GC-MS analysis indicated presence of many economically important compounds such as eugenol, cinnamaldehyde, benzyl benzoate etc., in leaf and bark oil of all studied species. Abundance of considered favorable characters which are already consisted with cultivated accessions Sri Gemunu and Sri Wijaya bark and leaf oil with important characters and easy peeling ability has been observed in tested wild types, indicating the possibilities of improvement of Ceylon cinnamon for these characters through hybridization programme using wild relatives.

Coscinium fenestratum (Gaertn.) Colebr. is an important medicinal plant belonging to the family Menispermaceae. Multiple shoots were formed from epicotyl explants on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 1.0 µM kinetin (Kin) and 0.25 µM 2,4-Dichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2,4-D). A maximum of five shoots were obtained from one explant in a 75-day culture period. The effect of subsequent subcultures on shoot formation was also studied. Repeated subculture favoured the increase in shoot length and the number of shoots per explant in the media containing Kin and 2,4-D. Higher concentrations of either cytokinin used: butyric acid (BA) or Kin causes stunting of multiple shoots with small and narrow leaves. After 100% in vitro rooting was obtained in half-strength MS supplemented with 2.5 µM Indole-3-butyric acid (IBA), plantlets were transferred to ex vitro conditions. Following a 15-day in vitro rooting period and 12 days of ex vitro acclimatization, 66.7% of the plantlets were established in the compost beds for another two months to improve the leaf size and then transferred to the field with 100% survival rate. This protocol has the potential for use as a tool for mass scale production of planting material.

Santalum album L. (sandalwood) is a valuable tropical plant species that belongs to the family Santalaceae. Santalol -the active compound in S. album, which is commonly known as sandalwood oil is highly valued in the perfumery industry due to its sweet persistent aroma. Sandalwood plants are over-exploited for harvesting their wood. Although the species is naturally regenerated by seeds the success rate is as low as 20 %. Due to the hemi-parasitic nature of S. album, the survival of seedlings is low making the species rare in Sri Lanka. There is a high demand for sandalwood plants for commercial scale plantations. Therefore in the present study, plantlet regeneration through somatic embryogenesis was studied in order to produce a large number of healthy plants to be used in establishing commercial scale plantations.Mature and immature seeds, leaf discs and nodal segments were used as explants for embryonic callus induction. Nodal segments found to be the best explants for embryonic callus production. Murashige and Skoog medium (MS) supplemented with 2.5 mg/L 2,4-dichloro phenoxy acetic acid (2,4-D) and 3.0 mg/L kinetin (kin) induced callus with a mean diameter of 3.22 ± 0.1 cm after 8 weeks of incubation. Somatic embryo induction was optimized by the addition of 0.5 mg/L benzyl amino purine (BAP), 1.0 mg/L indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and 0.5 mg/L kin to MS medium, which resulted about 10 somatic embryos per 1.0 cm 2 of callus. Somatic embryos germinated best in MS medium supplemented with 2.0 mg/L gibberellic acid (GA 3 ). The highest percentage of plantlet regeneration was observed when the germinated embryos were transferred into MS medium supplemented with 0.4 mg/L BAP and 0.2 mg/L IAA.

Aims: Plumbago indica is a medicinal plant widely grown in the tropics and temperate region to use in traditional systems of medicine. Different parts of this plant are used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, dysmenorrhea, cancer, leprosy, syphilis, rheumatism, paralysis, headache, leukoderma, enlarged glands, scabies, ophthalmia, dyspepsia, haemorrhage, piles, flatulence, loss of appetite etc. Various kinds of researches were carried out in different countries on propagation and pharmacology of this medicinal plant. Scientifically proven data were concentrated on this paper to facilitate reliable convenience data source and encourage further studies. Methodology: Scientific data published on full papers, abstracts about morphology, growth, propagation, traditional medicinal uses and pharmacology of P. indica over 70 years (1949-2020) by researchers in different countries were collected and categorized under suitable topics. Results: According to literature P. indica leaves, stems, roots contain phytochemical compound that are responsible for its medicinal properties. Tissue culture of this plant can be uses as effective propagation method to fulfill the increasing demand of raw materials (dried plant parts) for medicinal preparations as well as preserve the plant in their natural habitat. Value: P. indica is used to treat vast range of diseases in traditional medicinal systems in different countries and currently pharmacological experiments are conducting to prove it scientifically. Plumbagin present in P. indica roots was already identified as a potential anti-cancer agent and subjected to more research interest. Therefore this review article helps new researchers to get wide knowledge about the plant and its pharmacology.

ABSTRACT. Celastrus paniculatus