CLARENCE M. KILIAN 
210 YORKSHIRE DRIVE 
BIRMINGHAM 9 
ALABAMA 
oe 
DIRECTIONS FOR PLANTING ORCHID SEED 
Orchid seed may be planted in chemist's flasks, 
in bottles or in fruit jars -- or in any glass con- 
tainer which can be closed with a cotton stopper or 
tight-fitting lid, such as on a fruit jar. | 
Preparation of Planting Medium 
Orchid seed is usually planted on agar with 
which has been mixed certain nutrients. A standard 
mixture is Difco Bacto Orchid Agar, which follows 
Knudsen'ts formla. To 3 level tablespoons of this 
mixture, add one pint of distilled water which you 
can get from your drug store. Bring to a boil, and 
stir constantly, to prevent scorching. Divide the 
solution equally by pouring into five 500 ce flasks, 
or eight 300 cc flasks, or 5 pint fruit jars. Stopper 
the flasks tightly with non-absorbent cotton, or 
place the lids on the fruit jars. Place the containers 
in a pressure cooker, and sterilize for 30 minutes at 
15 to 20 lbs. pressure. 
After removing from the pressure cooker, lst 
cool until the agar has "jellied". This can be hastened 
by eetting in a pan of ice cubes. 
Planting the Seed 
Plant only part of seed seed at one time for 
reasons which will be stated in another paragraph. 
Sterilize the portion of seed you are going to plant 
by placing it in a small test tube (about 3/8 x 3 
inches) and fill the test tube to within 1/2 inch of 
