Week 9 (according to Canvas)

I find it difficult to keep track of the weeks as time marches on. I guess if its week 9 then we are axactly half way through the semester. Now we all just have to hold on, bear down and get throught the last half. I'm pulling for you all. 

This week in lab I felt like I was really productive until earlier today. I finally finished and turned in my abstract for the Estrella Mountain Conference, attempted to isolate some of the fungal colonies that may be endophytes on my other plates and made more agar. 

However today I realized that the water I used to dilute the antibiotic in my agar was not sterile (because I forgot and used regular DI water) which means every single one of the plates I made is also contaminated. This puts me behind in a major way so I'm rather upset with myself. 

This week I also learned to melt paraffin wax and pour it into the microtome. Paraffin is stronger than the potato I was using before and has less contaminates. I made some beautifully thin specimens that were a joy to look at under the microscope. Josh found a strange structure in the oleander stems that almost looked like a corkscrew. Matt identified it as a ligated xylem vesicle used for conducting water. Or something. 

WEEK 7

This week in lab was very colorful. The mold gardens I made last week grew spectacular fungal colonies. The rainbow of species is so awe inspiring I haven't identified any. Some look like little green hills with white, crystalline hyphea snow frosting the tops. There are black slime molds with lightning bolts of hypea diving deep into the agar for nutrients. See its stunning: 

Ok so maybe you have to see it close up. I think its pretty. 

Anyway this week I also noticed a white slow-growing fungi on some of the oleander stems. An endophyte needs a minnimum of two weeks to appear so the timing is perfect. Here is a photo Amanda took for me using her phone: Thanks Amanda!

I still don't really know how to identify fungi so I have no clue what kind this may be. I just really hope nothing grows over break. 

What Week is it Again?

This week in lab I finished plating my plant samples to isolate any endophytic fungi inhabiting the tissues. It feels great to get that done so that they have time for maturation. I have moved the samples to a dark cabinet as these conditions are more favorable for fungi than the incubator 

I also used the agar Andrew made last fall for catching spores in various locations around the lab. Matt told me there are fungal spores in the rain so I left various agar plates open during the storm earlier this week. After the colonies grow large enough I will identify the species using a dichotomous key as practice for endophytes.