Tissue culture

From: Steven Stewart (steven.stewart@worldnet.att.net)
Date: Tue Jun 16 1998 - 09:24:34 PDT


Date: Tue, 16 Jun 1998 12:24:34 -0400
From: Steven Stewart <steven.stewart@worldnet.att.net>
To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com
Message-Id: <aabcdefg2058$foo@default>
Subject: Tissue culture

I have a question about a number of "Green Dragon" _Dionaea muscipula_
and the _Nepenthes madagascariensis_ I recieved from the tissue culture
business in Central Florida.
It is my understanding when a plant is put into t.c., the end product
should be virtually "identical", this allows buyers of tissue culture
plants the security of knowing the plants were not collected illegally
from the wild or any place else. Tissue culture also enables the time
and work of a plant breeders end product to be patiented, be it cultivar
or hybrid being propagated. Another reason for t.c. might also be to
propagate only one indivdual, making sexual propagation impossible in
dioecious and self incompatable plant types, shipping and permitting is
another sound reason for t.c..
My question is why am I getting a great deal of variable forms, i.e.
"cupped trap", and color variety in plants grown side by side, and also
certain plants with other unique growth forms?
The answer to the question from the producer was to apologize for the
breeder and his staff for "mixing up" the clone batches. On the other
hand I was told all of the _N. madagascariensis_ are staminate without a
doubt because they all came from the same clone. The _Nepenthes_ have
variability due to my experimentation in culture, to me this is
understandable, the _Dionaea_ I have had no need to experiment in
culture with, because of my many years of growing them.
I just wanted to here from other growers, t.c. and otherwise, to find
out what possible corrections in t.c. propagation might limit these
contradictions, and other future problems.
Steve Stewart



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