Growth of Ferns from Spores in Axenic Culture

In this chapter, a method by which many fern species can be successfully grown from spores in axenic culture will be described. Unlike the conventional method of sowing the spores on compost, this method allows spore populations free from contamination by spores of other species to be sown. The method can be used for the production of mature sporophytes or to provide a controllable system for biosystematic studies of, or experimentation with, fern gametophytes (1 ,2 ).