Orchid Flasking
Nov 1, 2009 Orchid Propagation
I received my orchid seed sowing media a couple days ago.
Today, I made some jars (8 of them). I am using 1/2 pint wide mouth jars. I cooked them in a pressure cooker (15 psi for 15 minutes) to sterilize them. This worked out ok, but they ended up being sealed (with a vacuum), so it might lead to problems when I sow the seeds. I will let these sit for about a week and see if there is any contamination. I tried to follow the instructions from here, but I didn’t have a good way to let the jars cool down since I was only cooking two at a time. I had to open the cooker and tighten the bands to form the seal. It is all a learning experience.
I think I will prepare another 8 jars using the method from Lotte & Thomas Orchids. I will try to do that sometime during the next week. They prepare the flasks in an oven at 300 degrees F for 30 minutes and then let them cool in the oven. This might be and easier solution.
I also thought that if I tried using a different type of jar (like a baby food jar or smaller canning jars), I might be able to cook more at a time and let them cool over night. I might experiment with that also.
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