Hi henry, I agree that seed raising if available is very economical but for me where I am ( temperate zone) the seedling will still want to follow their natural response to the seasons and time clocks and be vulnerable as seedlings often are.If the same seeds / material is grown in vitro it is then growing continuously and the process of multiplication can be performed regardless of the real world seasons and so may be carried out all year long if desired. There is definitely difficulty with propagation of some of the tropical bamboos and with the precocious flower and dying of specie, seeds are not going to be freely available when we may desire them.( if they are hard to propagate by normal means in the out side world then they will probably be difficult to do in micro propagation ) From a cost comparison for propagation of say seeds or asexual propagation in nursery situations or in the field to say in the laboratory it would be conditional on local resources and situation. Climate, water availability, infrastructure and labour are all going to be big factors. When you then add the availability of material to work with such as in the tropics where bamboo may occur locally or have been imported and grown in quantity. If on the other hand material is not economially available locally then importing established material in over large distance will probably involve considerable cost and energy and may incur considerable cost to acclimatise to local conditions. For the micro propagation cost comparison there is the costs of setting up suitable laboratory facilities and then consumables and energy requirements and then the facilities to acclimatise the invito plantlets to the real world, non of which is cheap.One main advantage if these facilities are available is to be able to provide optimum conditions for strong growth. Secondly if it is successful, large quantities can be produced in a relatively short time. Each organisation or individual would need to appraise their situation and hopefully make informed decisions based on sound practise and rational economics and outcomes. For myself I am in research mode at the moment and have access to lab and grow on facilities, so learning method and monitoring of growth and propagation of a range of species and situations to assess suitable options and viability is appropriate for me. I do not have the capital and resources to buy in large quantities of the plant material I would like.warm regards Peter.
>>> "Henry" <ahokas@bigpond.com> 9/10/2008 >>>
Hi,
Growing from seed is a cheap alternative to the very costly process
of mass micropropergation. If the seeds can be sourced from a very
reliable supply, and in that regard I have my plants from two
different sources but still can not be 100 percent gaurateed that they
are Moso. The ideal way would be to go and get the seeds for yourself.
The same can be said for micropropagation, How long will it be before
they flower and die out? The micropropagated material must have its
history understood before it could be called "safe". If the source of
seed can be relied upon and then the selected individuals cloned then
you would come up with a better chance of a superior plant for your
microclimate.
My plot is only a trial and if all goes well then some
micropropagation of some of these seedlings may well be on the cards.
cheers Henry
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