Tissue Culture General & Orchids

[kg5]

It is very obviously that tissue culture has made huge leaps in knowledge in recent years.

Keep getting caught out with old , out of date info.

The example I will use 1st is about orchids but I would like to talk about other plants as well so am using the off topic area to post this. The info will also be for all plants across the plant kingdom.

Have got the picture that recent developments have made diocotaleadons more user friendly to tissue culture endeavors other than locked into only using the meristem. Is this true?

Most of the info I have found is all about using the meristem but other info is telling me that fresh new leaf growth can be used because of the new medium available.

Can the new leaf/bulb growth that is about a 250mm or 10" long on a dendrobium speciosum be used for tissue culture?

[Ray]

I may be mistaken, but I am of the impression that there is meristematic (undifferentiated) tissue throughout the plant. Yes, it is relatively highly concentrated at the "growth tips" of the roots and shoots, which would make cloning easier, but there is no doubt that some plants will be relatively easy to coax with the right chemistry to cause those "other" cells to differentiate.

After all, phalaenopsis are fairly commonly cloned from inflorescences and a phaius cane can be divided up and induced to produce new plants from each piece. To get your dendrobium to grow might simply be finding the right initiator.

[kg5]

Thank you Ray.

Am going try to explain what the new dendrobium speciosum leaf/bulb growth looks like. Have no image.

Description
They grow very quickly. Have seen leaf sheaf/bulb here grow 6"& larger in 24hrs. In 48hrs they can reach 10" to 12" in height. They are also light green in colour and turn dark green as they mature. Plus they are 2"to 2"1/2" thick.

This new growth seems to fit the description of a strong growth "tip" that suits new growth stimulants for a diocotaleadon. It could be the biggest growth tip around.-

[Ray]

That particular species happens to be the only dendrobium I’ve ever had in my collection, so I’m quite familiar with it.

I still think the meristematic tissue is concentrated at the apex...

[Mr.Fakename]

I took a look at some publications, and micropropagation using axillary buds seems to be very common and effective, much more than leaf or root culture.

I think it's what you're describing, right? The place on an old growth where new keikis pop up?

Regarding media used, variations of Vacin & Went are prominent.

[neophyte]

There have been publications that have used leaf sections from Phalaenopsis for cloning/tissue culture, I think.

[kg5]

Thank you all for your comments. Any search finds on tissue culture would be gratefully received here.

They are a beautiful orchid with a special flowering ability. So nice for you to understand this plant Ray. Thanks you for the "tip" lol. "the meristematic tissue is concentrated at the apex..." Ray I finally get a chance to go deeper into the propagation sciences that you have been involved for a long time.

These growths are coming out of the soil/root system.

To me a meristem does not look like they will produce too many plants. Hope I am wrong.

Looks like am going have to do a lot of experiments. Which is going to be a lot of fun. Not too many people are sharing their knowledge in this area out there. Maybe am still not putting in the right google search words.

[Ray]

Originally Posted by kg5

To me a meristem does not look like they will produce too many plants. Hope I am wrong.

When trying to get multiple plants from the meristem, the first thing done is exacting it and getting it to grow undifferentiated. That is often done by rotating or oscillating the growing chamber.

Once sufficient undifferentiated cells have grown, the material is divided to provide many such clusters, and when left static, they will differentiate, ultimately becoming individual plants.

[kg5]

Good on you Ray.

Some great search words. You sum up that growth step with a clearness I have not found elsewhere.

Have seen it done but not explained.

[kg5]