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Kitchen culture kits

NickHubbell

It’s a trap!
Has anyone used the Kitchen Culture Kits for CP use? I am thinking about trying the kit and would like to know if anyone has had success with these tissue culture kits.

Thanks,
 
I haven't...yet, but I'm saving up money to buy a cp kit from there.
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I'm absolutely sure it would work. the only way it wouldn't work is if you don't do it properly and don't sterilize the flasks good enough, then you get fungus...
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Hello everyone, can someone tell me were you can buy this kit from I am rellay interstead in purchasing this kit can some one help me out. Thanks for replys.
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Here is the Kitchen Culture Kits homepage(very informative). You might want to read through everything first.
Kitchen Culture
 
I am really thinking about getting the kit for cps. Has anyone tried the kit that is sold with Sarracenia? I have some Sarracenia alabamensis seed that I would like to try. Of course, I am going to try S. purpurea or another common species first just to see how it works.
 
Hi,

I used the kit. It is great for starting tc if you are willing to put in the work and effort. They suggest microwave use, but be warned that this only sterilizes roughly half of the cultures - a pressure cooker or autoclave is almost mandatory if you want to do this successfully long term.

Sarracenia tc is difficult, as you have to introduce the plant using either rhyzome tissue or seed. Seed sterilization is difficult due to roughness of seed, and rhyzome meristem isolation is also very difficult and risky, especially when one is beginning.

I suggest that if you pursue tc you start with droseras or pinguiculas, which are easy to start from leaf tissue, or use seed for almost any genus.

if you'd like to know more feel free to contact me.
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nelhardt@hotmail.com

-noah
 
I actually pieced together tissue culture stuff from around the house. Still thinking of getting a pressurecooker, though, as it appears about half my cultures have mold.

I haven't tried with carnivorous plants yet though. Still waiting to see if it worked, or if I need to change something else. African violets are supposed to be very easy to tissue culture, so that's what I started with.
 
I am working on getting all the basic equipment needed. I bought a pressure cooker just for that job. I am planning on using baby food jars and have collected over 60 jars so far. Not that I will be using all of them to start. The other basic supplies are either on hand or will be on the way when I order the KCK.

I have read that Sarracenia seed is hard to sterilize. Has anyone tried to removing the embryo from the seed for introduction into tissue culture?
 
  • #10
Excision of the embreyo! I do it with citrus and it speeds germination,also I`m trying it with apple\pear seeds.
 
  • #11
Today, after about three weeks from my first attempt, I noticed a seedling! It's from a snapdragon seed... however, it's in one of my contaminated cultures, so it's a race against time. Exciting though!
 
  • #12
A good, easy to get hold of book is Plants from Test Tubes; an Introduction to Micropropagation by Lydiane Kyte & John Kleyn. I have the hardcover 3rd edition which was about $40 but recently Timber Press has come out with a softcover edition for half that much!
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This book tells you just about everything you need to know about TC. You can use the plans in this book to make your own stuff or buy premade parts and setup an entire TC facility. A very useful and versitile book!

Also, you might check out Phytotech Laboratories website for info and higher quality growing medias, antibiotics and hormones and even TC dry goods like flasks, tools and sterilizers than the "hobby lab" geared places.

Good luck!
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  • #13
Advantage to tissue culture? How fast do you get a nice big clone? I know we clone carrots here at my school and it takes a whole semester to get a little baby carrot so I thought I would ask this.
 
  • #14
I bought "Plants from Test Tubes" about 4 months ago.

Rick Walker has some great stuff on tissue culture of Drosera and Pinguicula. The suggestion that using hormones is not really needed in home tissue culture unless mass multiplication is needed. Has anyone used the coconut milk culture. I will post a link later as I am not able to access it from work.

What I am interested in is Nepenthes, Sarracenia, and Dioneae as my main goals for culture.

Thanks,

Nick
 
  • #15
I haven't tried it, but asked a Sarracenia "expert" once about using Sarracenia seed for TC. He said that it's actually quicker to raise Sarracenia from seed the normal way, provided you fertilize them biweekly and skip dormancy for the first year or two. In other words, you'll get a mature plant quicker. The only advantage to TC Sarracenia seed would be that you would be able to propagate them quicker once you get them going.
 
  • #16
I have this book also.

Darcie:

TC really speeds things up if you are starting from seed, you can have 3 year old size sarracenia in a matter of months. However, the main advantage is the rapidity by which you can produce new clones. With the correct conditions, etc., one can have hundreds and thousands of plantlets from one leaf in a few months.

-noah
 
  • #17
This is called embryo rescue. A rather fascinating and sometime tricky procedure, Ive never attempted it myself but there are a few orchids Id like to attempt this with.
 
  • #18
How starile do the conditions have to be when doing TC? Will I have to make a hood or will I be able to do it in the open air with out contamination?
 
  • #19
[b said:
Quote[/b] (jon @ April 10 2004,11:11)]How starile do the conditions have to be when doing TC? Will I have to make a hood or will I be able to do it in the open air with out contamination?
has to be completely sterile air. if you do it in open air, you'll just get a batch of mold. all it takes is one tiny spore to get in the flask and the cultures done for
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