Acclimatization of tissue-cultured plants

A substantial number of micropropagated plants do not survive transfer from in vitro conditions to greenhouse or field environment. The greenhouse and field have substantially lower relative humidity, higher light level and septic environment that are stressful to micropropagated plants compared to in vitro conditions. The benefit of any micropropagation system can, however, only be fully realized by the successful transfer of plantlets from tissue-culture vessels to the ambient conditions found ex vitro. Most species grown in vitro require an acclimatization process in order to ensure that sufficient number of plants survive and grow vigorously when transferred to soil. This article reviews current and developing methods for the acclimatization of micropropagated plantlets.