What's new
TerraForums Venus Flytrap, Nepenthes, Drosera and more talk

Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

Drosophyllum seed

Hi all,

Finally, I found a method for germinating Drosophyllum lusitanicum seed under my growing conditions. Previously, I tried scarifying the seed, soaking in 500ppm GA3 for 24h, and placing them in a tube of distilled water (changed daily). I also tried scarifying them, soaking in 500ppm GA3 for 24h, and sowing them onto moist perlite. Both methods failed under my conditions.

Most recently, the seed I sowed were approximately 2 years old, and kept dry in the fridge before sowing (from the same batch as the prior attempts). I scarified the seed lightly with a filer until its white endosperm was just visible. The seed were then soaked in 500ppm GA3 for 24h, then sowed onto fine vermiculite. The pots were placed in a tray and sat in 1/4" water. The tray was covered with clear plastic wrap (with air holes) and placed onto a heat mat set to "medium." The tray was placed 3" under 160W cool white fluorescent tubes (15h photoperiod). Ambient humidity=100%, temperature= 80F/60F day/night.

5 seed were sown; 3 germinated (the other two rotted). The seed germinated in 1-2 weeks. After germination, they were individually transplanted into peat pots containing 1:1:1:1:1 peat:perlite:pumice:quartz sand:vermiculite, and topdressed with a thin (1-2mm) layer of vermiculite. When transplanting, a generous amount of surrounding vermiculite was taken so as not to damage the roots. The potting medium has been kept constantly moist for the time being. The seedlings have been left uncovered and placed 3" under the same lighting conditions, with slightly lower temps (70F/60F day/night) and humidity (50-65%). They have grown ~1mm vertically in the past week and appear very healthy.

A fairly verbose description, but I thought I'd share my method in detail with the forums, should anyone find it helpful (though I realize that sowing Drosophyllum lusitanicum seed onto vermiculite is nothing new).

Ken
 
Thank you for sharing it with us. My missing ingredient is the GA3. Where can one obtain it? I have 4 seeds in the process of germinating - scarification and soaking in water, now placed in 1:1:1 sand/peat/perlite, covered with Saran wrap. but next spring I hope to try with a batch I have being stored in the fridge.
 
Hi Jim,

Nice hearing from you. Sorry for not keeping in touch for a while, but this MD/PhD Program is killing me! Good news is I picked up my PhD in Neuroscience last May, and only have 2 more years to go before picking up the MD. Bad news is, I'm currently in the middle of my surgery clerkship and working 80 h/week! .....and then there's the 3+ years of residency.....JOY OF JOYS!
smile_m_32.gif
But I haven't lost a plant yet!

To answer your question, I was given some by a friend of mine who works in a lab (I think you can find some in a Sigma catalog). It can also be found online--but the only offers I've seen are in liquid form.
The problem is, as far as I know, GA3 doesn't have a very long shelf life at room temps and is even less stable once put into solution (perhaps gone mostly bad in a few days). So I'm not sure how reliable the online stuff is, though I haven't tried it.

The GA3 I used was in powdered form. If you find some of this, you'll have to first dissolve it in a few drops of 70%+ MeOH or EtOH, then add this solution to distilled water (GA3 is hydrophobic will not easily mix in water unless already dissolved). You'll also probably want to make use of a calibrated scale as micrograms of the stuff is all you'll need if you plan on making a 10ml volume solution (which is all you should need for a few seeds). Excessively strong solutions of GA3 have been shown to inhibit germination! So, if you're going to do it, might as well try to be as accurate as possible. I used a 500ppm solution, but I've read of people using 1000ppm. Going higher might be risky.

By the way, I don't think the GA3 is necessary to germinate Drosophyllum lusitanicumseed (even old seed, as they can be viable for many many years). I thought I'd use it anyway.

Sorry for the poor grammar--I've been writing emails for the past hour and my hands are tired!

Hope this helps.

Ken

PS: Good luck with your seed! Let me know how it turns out.
 
I thought you were like 15, Ken
smile_k_ani_32.gif




Is this blue too bright? Should I change back to pink?
 
JimScott you can get GA3 online. Just do a search for it. Its realively inexpencive too. I found a couple sources for it.

Clint Yes the blue is too bright, and hard to read. I didn;t care for the pink, but atleast I could read it easily!
smile_n_32.gif
 
Oh well. Pink matches the hearts.

Shut up
biggrin.gif
 
Clint, you're too funny!!!
laugh.gif


Ken, congratulations for your achievement! And good to hear from ya! I'd say, Go New England, but....

Josh, thanks.

I think I actually see some of that white pulpy mass swelling / emerging on one of the seeds, so maybe Ihave something there. Had to fight off algae / refresh the water while I was keeping them in water, by the window. Drosophyllum reminds me a lot of germinating Morning Glory seeds
 
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]I thought you were like 15, Ken

Hehe......nope, I'm a ripe-old age of 26! Back when I was your age, I had to walk 5 miles to and from school, uphill both ways, through 6 feet of snow.
smile_m_32.gif


[b said:
Quote[/b] ]And good to hear from ya! I'd say, Go New England, but....

Don't get me started.
smile_m_32.gif
I'd rather forget last weekend's game. Not pretty. Not pretty at all.

[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Had to fight off algae / refresh the water while I was keeping them in water, by the window.

I ran into similar problems when I tried germinating the seed in a tube of water, except my problem was with water mold/fungus.

[b said:
Quote[/b] ]I think I actually see some of that white pulpy mass swelling / emerging on one of the seeds, so maybe Ihave something there.

Keep your eyes on them. My seedlings grew very quickly!
Good luck with them.
 
Do you have any tips for me, since I want to become a physician? Will my mediocre passing math skills hinder me even though I'm advanced in science and chemistry?
 
  • #10
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Do you have any tips for me, since I want to become a physician? Will my mediocre passing math skills hinder me even though I'm advanced in science and chemistry?

Feel free to PM me if you want.  Here's some quick tips:

1. You need to do well in college.  While there are exceptions to every rule, the average accepted med school student has a GPA of 3.6-3.7 (A-). The best way to accomplish this is by majoring in something that you LIKE--not something that you think would be impressive to the admissions committee.  Only 1/2 of my class is composed of science majors. Make use of the professors--they are being paid to teach you so take advantage. They will also be writing your letters of recommendation. And most of them WANT to teach you--you won't get the same luxury in graduate/med school, where a good percentage of the faculty are forced to teach and consider students a nuisance. You may want to go to a college that does NOT have a graduate school--the faculty there will spend most of the time teaching (instead of doing research and having their TA's teach you).

2. You need to do well on the MCAT which you should take in your junior or senior year of college (standardized test). The core science curriculum that med schools require of all applicants should prepare you well. You may want to take courses in anatomy, physiology, and cell biology. Test prep classes can be very helpful as well.

3. You need to demonstrate maturity and dedication to a cause. Most people do volunteer service, some do research, others take leadership roles in organizations. I suggest you pick an activity that thrills you, and do the most/be the best you can be in whatever that is. Don't do 20 activities to fill up your resume. Do pick a few activities and fill your resume with meaninful and deep accomplishments.

4. The average age of acceptance to med school is around 26. Only 20% of my class came directly out of college. The rest took time off to gain extra experiences, or decided to become a physician after being in another career. So don't be disappointed if you don't get right out of college.

5. Most importantly, find the time to have fun and stay in touch with family and friends. This shouldn't be hard if you major in something that truely interests you, because studying won't take as long and will be enjoyable. And you need to be happy to do well in your personal and professional life.

6. *Being weak in math won't hurt you at all, as long as you're proficient enough to do the math needed for chemistry and basic physics. Most med schools have no requirement for completion of math courses. I took calculus I & II to help with physics.  Also, if you did great in high school that's great, if you did poorly, doesn't matter. No med school will ask you about your high school grades--so starting college gives you a clean slate.....use it wisely.

Ultimately, being articulate, self-motivated, professional, intelligent, and a team player/empathic to the needs of others are the keys to success in almost any career.  If you develop these traits and put them into practice, you'll be successful in your personal and professional life.

....Oh, and if you're planning on applying soon, consider applying to an MD/PhD Program. It takes 7-8 years (instead of the typical 4 years of med school) but has many perks: 1) you can do meaningful, cutting-edge research in whatever it is that interests you, 2) you get two advanced degrees which puts you at a significant advantage over your other med school students when it comes time to applying to residency, and gives you wider career options (clinical, research, consulting, management, combination of these), and best of all 3) they PAY YOU to go to med school. That's right, you can get a PhD and MD......and come out WITH money, instead of paying hefty tuition fees. There's a big demand for people that can bridge the gap between basic science and clinical medicine--you can write your own ticket to almost anywhere with this dual degree. You should strongly consider it....but that's my biased opinion.

That's about it.....I think I've sufficiently destroyed the original purpose of my own thread!  

biggrin.gif
 
  • #11
Oh man you have really put my mind to rest! As far as volunteer work goes, to it matter what I do? What should I do?

Man thank you so much!
 
  • #12
whoahhh, no offense, and I dunno why, but JustLikeAPill, I thought you were a girl and about 30

whoops!
 
  • #13
Nope. I'm 16 and a guy.
 
Back
Top