Effects of colchicine treatment and polyploidy induction on yield components and some morphological and biochemical characteristics of Lavandula stricta Delile

number of sub leaves (leaves on sub-branches), number of internodes on main stems, number of lateral stems, spike length on the main panicle, number of spikes, number of flowers per panicle, fresh and dry weight of aerial parts, fresh and dry weight of roots, root length, leaf area, internode length, total phenol content, total flavonoids content, antioxidant activity, total sugar content and chlorophyll quality were measured. The results of the analysis of variance showed that the studied treatments had a significant effect on all traits except the number of main leaves, the number of internodes on main stems, and root length. The means comparison showed that with increasing the concentration and period of colchicine application, height of aerial parts, internode length, the number of flowers per panicle, and total sugar content decreased and spike length on the main panicle and total phenol content increased. Based on the results of flow cytometric analysis, the mean genome size was 0.73 pg in plants treated with colchicine at a concentration of 0.4% for 48 hours, while the mean genome size in the control plants was 0.55 pg. Plants in other treatments showed a mean genome size of 0.57. In general, the results of this experiment showed a positive response of L. stricta to colchicine for the induction of polyploidy and the possibility of using this method in the future breeding of this plant.