Synth seeds

[shonman]

Apparently,

People have been making synthetic seeds for plants that don't set good seeds very often.

It involved a sort of micro propagation technique,

Where they take a good part of the plant, like an auxiliary bud for example,

Or use a plant 'embryo'

Then put in a medium that it will live and root in,

Then encase the whole thing in a gel coat type covering....

I guess it sprouts and grows eventually.......

http://agriquest.info/index.php/synthetic-seeds

[frozenthunderbolt]

Similar to plant cloning;

- clonal tissue on a sterile growth medium

- treat with auxin, cytokinin and Gibberellins to stimulate root and leaf/stem growth from the undifferentiated tissue

[thistime]

I saw the process on a doco years ago, they showed small tissue cultured individuals been dropped in a solution that coated the embryo like a testa. I found this on a new Zealand forestry website http://www.insights.co.nz/sustainable_plantations_stf.aspx

Another propagation technology which is being developed is somatic embryogenesis – the formation of multiple embryos in culture. Embryogenic cell lines are established from immature seed, and millions of immature embryos of individual genotypes can be multiplied from each seed. These embryos are developed and matured under controlled laboratory conditions and then can be germinated like natural seeds. The efficiency of this process is still low, but the technology has the potential to produce unlimited quantities of embryos of desirable genotypes at costs cheaper than current control-pollinated seed prices