Active Flask Storage

[kiwiorchids]

Hello again,

Anyone know if it is possible to store activly growing flasks under UV and daylight fluoro bulbs?

I thought the UV light would inhibit any fungal activity, and aid in the seedling growth.

[Brutal_Dreamer]

Seems that UV light (like used to disinfect water in a pond) would burn up the orchids in a flask. I would be careful doing that. I would guess there must be different types of UV light though. I look forward to some of our scientist's answers.

cheers,
BD

[Halloamey]

Jordan it won't be possible to put your flasks under the UV light, because the intensity that will kill the fungi will also most probably kill the plantlets. See how I say 'most probably' there would be no way to actually determine it without a bit of experimenting with different exposure times and intensities etc. You may find that the fungi dies, the plants survive with some defects, or the plants die and the fungii survive or both die or both survive LOL. Even if the fungii died and your plantlets survived they will have severe mutations, UV light is a leading cause for mutations which give rise to skin cancers in humans which you already might know (living in Aus and Nz). Yes as BD pointed out there are UV lights that come in a broad range of energy spectrum from 100 to 400 nm wavelengths, but the wavelenths from 250 to 300 are the most germicidal ones. But I guess UV is not an option fro killing the contamination. One option would be to immediately deflask and plant the plantlets in compots after thoroughly cleaning them with mercuric chloride or replanting them in other sterie flasks after the mercuric chloride decontamination step.

Hello again,

Anyone know if it is possible to store activly growing flasks under UV and daylight fluoro bulbs?

I thought the UV light would inhibit any fungal activity, and aid in the seedling growth.

[kiwiorchids]

right....In our aquarium, we have a system (a rather annoying system thanks to AquaOne) where we have to purchase two sets of two bulbs for the hood. There is an option where you can purchase a set with one daylight fluoro, and one daylight UV. It is pretty weak, almost looks like the normal fluoro with a very faint pink tinge. That is the sort i mean, not a hardcore purple UV light. It has no effect on the plants or fish and slows and eventually stops algal growth.

[Halloamey]

Jordan I am familiar with this tube, actually it is not UV light at all. It is a special grow light which enhances just the red and blue ends of the light spectrum. White light is composed of 7 colours, but plants can make efficient use of only the red-orange and the blue light. So these lights are made such that they emit light more only in these ranges whereas reducing the emissions of the other colors making them look violet (mixture of red and blue) The reason why it inhibits algae is not because of its germicidal properties but because plants can better use this light (algae are not as efficient in absorbing the blue light), so the plants can now outcompete the algae by absorbing the nutrients from the water column thus starving the algae.
This light will have no killing effect whatsoever on the fungii

right....In our aquarium, we have a system.There is an option where you can purchase a set with one daylight fluoro, and one daylight UV. It is pretty weak, almost looks like the normal fluoro with a very faint pink tinge. That is the sort i mean, not a hardcore purple UV light. It has no effect on the plants or fish and slows and eventually stops algal growth.

[kiwiorchids]

oh ok sweet as, btw, i dont have a fungal problem, its just when i do attempt to flask, like more precautionary. So i could use these tubes anyway? these growlight tubes?

[Halloamey]

I thought I read on FB that your flasks had some mold issues or something, may be I read it on someone else's wall LOL. You could use those lights to grow the plants, but I would say that would be a rather costly and unnecessary affair. Orchid plants in flask depend on the sugar in the media for food than on the light and photosynthesis, besides normal diffused light supplemented with the common cheap fluorescent whites is enough for plantlets in the flask.

oh ok sweet as, btw, i dont have a fungal problem, its just when i do attempt to flask, like more precautionary. So i could use these tubes anyway? these growlight tubes?

[Daethen]

You know, Jordan, you could take one of your flasks with mold and deflask it. Compot the largest seedlings and try replating the rest. It would give you a little experience in flasking without starting from seed. I know that is not where this thread was meant to go, but I know you will read it and this idea just popped into my head.

[kiwiorchids]

I thought I read on FB that your flasks had some mold issues or something, may be I read it on someone else's wall LOL. You could use those lights to grow the plants, but I would say that would be a rather costly and unnecessary affair. Orchid plants in flask depend on the sugar in the media for food than on the light and photosynthesis, besides normal diffused light supplemented with the common cheap fluorescent whites is enough for plantlets in the flask.

Lol you did read it on my page, but the experts at the local society said that the mold growing in there was not going to affect the plants, but i had to keep a close eye on it.

And fair enough, i might try and rig up a system with standard fluoros.

[kiwiorchids]

You know, Jordan, you could take one of your flasks with mold and deflask it. Compot the largest seedlings and try replating the rest. It would give you a little experience in flasking without starting from seed. I know that is not where this thread was meant to go, but I know you will read it and this idea just popped into my head.

hmm maybe, but we have a deflasking day coming up in a few weeks at one of the society members homes. Perhaps i could inoculate a flask with mould spores on purpose to practise replating lol!