Tissue Culture Lab

Potato Tissue Cultures & Plantlets

The Colorado State University Tissue Culture Lab is located at the San Luis Valley Research Center.  This location houses approximately 500 potato varieties. Clones are kept in test tubes and nodal cuttings are taken from the mother plant to produce a plantlet that is genetically identical to the mother plant. These plants are certified, disease-free material and are distributed throughout the United States as well as internationally.   

Our lab’s plantlets are suitable for additional increase in a tissue culture lab or to be planted in soil in a greenhouse. As in-vitro plantlets, they grow in a sterile medium and sealed container to ensure no contamination is present. 

Transferring these plants to a container or garden located outside is not recommended, as the environmental conditions are too harsh. In the potato industry, these plantlets are transferred to a greenhouse and planted in soil. The tubers the plant produces are then planted in the field.