Growing cells in an artificial medium. In plant conservation, the cells may be whole seeds, spores, or meristems and the medium is usually some derivation of agar.
Joyce Maschinski, Center for Plant Conservation and Valerie Pence, Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden Crotalaria avonensis is an endangered legume endemic to Florida that produces few seeds. In vitro shoot cultures of multiple genotypes have been grown at CREW to provide genetic diversity for restoration and for tissue cryopreservation. These cultures harbor a bacterium, identified […]
Although many rare plants have seeds that can be stored by conventional methods, not all species have seeds that can live after drying or freezing. Sometimes called “Exceptional plants, ” these species have a wide range of variation. Some produce few or no seeds, thus they cannot be seed banked, others have seeds or spores […]
Peter Zale and Matt Taylor, Longwood Gardens Several species of Spiranthes native to the Eastern U.S. are considered rare, threatened or endangered by federal and state agencies. Using the Pennsylvania endangered Spiranthes casei as a model species, experiments were designed to determine optimal conditions for in vitro seed germination and seedling development. Seeds were collected […]