Usually within 3 days after sowing or any flasking work, contamination can become visible. I unfortunately have lost most of my new flasks of Phalaenopsis seeds to a bacterial infection. Looking for a possible cause I can only think that the filter paper-method coupled with short sterilisation time was the cause. All is not lost however. I have learned a valuable lesson here - bugger the paper method! I am going to upgrade to automatic pipette and autoclavable eppendorf tubes and tips! I will get these on Monday. In addition I have requested more seeds of the same species that were given to me previously and these will hopefully give better results after the amendment of my sterilisation method.
I have included some images of the flask contamination.
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| Fungal contamination - not the Phalaenopsis seeds though |
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| Bacterial contamination of the Phalaenopsis seeds |
Wow. I am so enjoying your blog.
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