Tissue Culture Plants

[Back in the fold]

And now for a hick question from a hayseed in backwoods Montana. What is a tissue culture plant ? What does that term mean. I saw some in a shop for the very first time ever and they looked small and scraggly.

 

[Crispii]

TC plants mean plants that are cultured and raised in a sterile environment. They do not come with any pests, algae, or pathogens. They usually come in a cup and with a good amount of portion.

 

[Back in the fold]

OH ! OK. So no hitch hiking snails then ? Thanks man.

 

[Crispii]

OH ! OK. So no hitch hiking snails then ? Thanks man.

Nope! Pest free.

 

[Colin_T]

With tissue cultured plants, they find a plant that does really well under certain conditions or has a nice flower, etc. They clean the leaves and then cut each leaf into little tiny segments. These bits of leaf are put into a petri dish containing agar and a hormone rooting gel to encourage root growth. A lid is put on the petri dish and it is put on a rack under bright light. This is all done in a sterile lab.

After a couple of weeks the pieces of leaf have developed roots and are transplanted into a growing medium like perlite. The tiny plants are allowed to grow some more before being transplanted again.

The end result is hundreds of identical plants that have been grown in sterile conditions and will all be identical when they grow up. It's basically cloning plants and they can get hundreds or even thousands of identical plants from 1 original plant.

 

[Retired Viking]

Petco sell those snail free plants in a clear tube

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Petco sell those snail free plants in a clear tube

Never trust those things! I once bought an amazon sword, and the next week I had over 20 snails in my tank! They advertise it snail free, but you can never know for sure.

 

[Back in the fold]

Thanks @Colin_T . I was going to ask if they were clones. When did this development come around ?
@Retired Viking is correct. I've gotten those plants he's talking about and they were great. Don't know what tube you got yours out of @PheonixKingZ but next time make sure it isn't a porcelain tube.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Thanks @Colin_T . I was going to ask if they were clones. When did this development come around ?

1898 I believe.

 

[Colin_T]

Not sure if they have been around as long as Phoenix reckons but definitely been around since last century, 1990s I think they were available in Australia.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

No! I’m serious! Just look:

Straight from doctor googley!