ABSTRACT
It is not enough to produce high-quality plant material; one must also produce it in a timely • fashion, giving customers what they want, when they want it, at a price they can afford. Successful micropropagation on a commercial scale requires an understanding of two • equally complex and dynamic factors-the plants and the marketplace. The primary method of increase in woody plant micropropagation is axillary shoot pro-• liferation, although adventitious shoot proliferation may occur with some kinds of plants, such as species of the Ericaceae. The most obvious use for micropropagation is to get a jump-start on growing the newest • and hottest items quickly. Micropropagation can cut 3 to 10 years off the time it takes to bulk-up new selections and get them to market.
