Seed/Seedling Baiting to Isolate Orchid Mycorrhizal Fungi for Seed Germination and Seedling Growth

Orchids have complex symbioses with fungi throughout their lifespan, and mycorrhizal fungi play a vital role in their life history, from early seed germination to mycorrhizal association in adults. For conservation purposes, using compatible fungi to facilitate seed germination could be low cost and easily maintain the genetic diversity of orchid populations. The increasing studies suggested that in situ/ex situ seed or seedling baiting techniques have been considered an effective and easy method to obtain efficient fungi for seed germination or seedling growth. In this chapter, the methods of in situ/ex situ seed and seedling baiting, including fungi isolation and identification and testing fungal abilities to promote seed germination or seedling growth, are described in detail. The approaches could have broad applications in orchid mycorrhizal studies and orchid conservation.