In this article, we'll explain a technique of germination and culture of terrestrial orchids which stands close to what actually happens in nature: germinating the seeds by using a fungus in conditions that resemble regular In Vitro culture. The technique is more accessible to the novice because it lacks recipees for (sometimes very) specific media. This lowers the threshold for hybridisation and could decrease pressure on wild populations.

This article is largely based upon the work of Dr. Frank Meissner who shared his experience with us.

• Introduction to Kitchen Culture

Kitchen Culture has become the popular name for a semi-professional approach to in-vitro culture by hobbyists, in most of the cases using a low-budget technique. A lot of the equipment and ingredients are readily available from shops because of a number of reasons:

• due to increasingly stricter hygiene regulations, kitchen/gardening/garage utensils now would have looked space-age tools only 20 years ago.
  
• If it can be put in a bag, it will be sold on the internet
  
• knowledge is spreading faster than ever, in unseen volumes
  

In this article, we'll try to get to the bottom of the different aspects of this part of the hobby, including how to build and maintain a reliable set-up. There are often several solutions to the same problems, and we'll split them up into budget-categories.

Mycorrhizal IV germination has the bonus that the ingredients used are rather common. Most of the effort will be put in perfecting one's technique and knowledge rather than searching and waiting for ingredients.

• Getting started: Location and equipment

• Media for fungal culture

• Collecting of the mycorrhiza

• Obtaining pure strains

• Maintaining your fungal library

• Sowing and explants

• Photoperiod and temperature

• Potting up and aftercare

• References

Frank Meissner's homepageErdorchideen.de
Forum thread 1 and thread 2
Kitchen Culture Resources Link