How We Propagated the Giant Staghorn Fern Our Way

The Giant Staghorn Fern or capa de Leon (Platycerium grande) can be propagated deliberately from spores even without following the advanced, but meticulous, procedure in fern spore propagation.

The latter involves the sowing of mature spores on sterilized fragments of “cabo-negro” or “paslak” and maintaining humid conditions all throughout until germination and seedling emergence.

Mass propagation by spore can also be done through tissue culture.

Cabo-negro is a local term for the indigenous, black, trunk-like columnar plant organ probably consisting of the root of a giant terrestrial fern.

It was only by accident that we discovered that the Giant Staghorn can be mass-produced sustainably by exploiting its natural method of propagation.

We’ve had several large Giant Staghorn ferns in the backyard at General Santos City since about 40 years ago, but we always grow these from starter plantlets or juvenile ferns which we bought from private suppliers.

Until recently, the city had a hot climate with scarce rainfall.

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Adult Mango Trees Can Be Converted to Another Variety by Top-grafting

Top-grafting, or topworking, is the grafting of the top portion of a plant that is already mature or large enough to have several branches.

An equivalent technique in which budding is used is called top-budding

The technique is not new, it has in fact been thoroughly discussed by Hartmann and Kester (1975) in their book Plant Propagation: Principles and Practices.

The authors say that the technique is used to convert an already established long-lived plant, either a tree, a shrub, or a vine, into another variety or cultivar.

Accordingly, apples and pears are examples of long-lived plants that can be top-grafted.

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Caveat: Common Plant Nameshow We Propagated Sampaguita by Leaf Cuttings

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The jasmine or Sampaguita also spelled sampagita and scientifically known as Jasminum sambac, is a popular plant because of the pleasing fragrance that its flowers emit.

This fragrance is due to the presence of essential oil.

Discovered: sampagita or jasmine can be propagated by leaf cuttings
Discovered: Sampagita or jasmine can be propagated by leaf cuttings

Essential oils are mixtures of substances that contain the essence, or odor, of the plant.

They are extracted from flowers and other plant parts and used in the manufacture of perfumes and cosmetics.

The principal volatile constituent of an essential oil usually belongs to a family of chemical compounds called terpenes.

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