Thanks to all who responded to my question relating to orchids germinated in a flask with their fungi and then being eaten by the fungi. It seems that this can be a problem across the world. While a solution may not be known, some possibilities include: reducing the nutrition level of the media being used; altering the pH of the media to potentially reduce the activity of the fungi; deflasking when the seedlings are small and hence probably a greater loss of seedlings; germination and growth without the fungi and inoculation of the deflasking media; germination out of flask, in pasturized media, that has been inoculated with the fungi.
Some further thought will now be applied before attempting possible solutions. Some thoughts to be considered include the effects of the combination of fungi found in the orchid. Do they balance each other and better manage the outcome for the orchid. Do the bacteria which we have eliminated also play a part in control and balance? The seed for germination - the lot for growth? A special thankyou for the clarification of the meaning and use of the word mycorhiza. Once again thankyou for your suggestions and support. Dick Thomson Melbourne, Australia _______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids
