Tissue culture preserves rare, native shrub

Georgia plume is one of the rarest native shrubs or small trees in Georgia, according to Hazel Wetzstein, horticulturist at University of Georgia. It’s currently known to exist only in three dozen locations in 19 Georgia counties, she said. Seed set is low or nonexistent, and seedlings have not been found in the wild. It doesn’t propagate well using conventional cutting methods, but Wetzstein has produced 400 new plants in tissue culture. In the summer, Georgia plume is topped with white plumelike flower clusters.

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For more: Hazel Wetzstein, (706) 542-0777; hywetz@uga.edu.

June 2008