Tissue Culture Program on Guam Focuses Its Attention on Orchid Propagation and Establishment of Local Workforce

The small-scale commercial production of orchids on Guam has always been linked to the limited availability of clean, disease-free planting material.  There are no tissue culture commercial laboratories on Guam and nearly all potted orchids are imported from Thailand, Taiwan, the Philippines, Hawaii and California.  In 2013 Guam’s Department of Agriculture in collaboration with the University of Guam initiated a large-scale tissue culture propagation program focusing on two most popular orchid genus: Dendrobium and Phalaenopsis.  Once the program was initiated and the facility had an abundance of orchid plantlets, an outreach program was initiated targeting local nurseries and schools.  Workshops and classroom presentations as well as field demonstrations for diverse audiences resulted in an enthusiastic response from businesses and the general public.  A desire to develop commercial and sustainable tissue culture orchid production became evident. This ambitious goal could be achieved providing the existence of an educated and trained local workforce.  Since neither the University of Guam nor the local Community College offer relevant classes, the Tissue Culture Lab focused its attention on offering hands-on experience for high school students and Community College students interested in biological subjects.  During the summer internship students were monetarily compensated for 30 hours per week. Responsibilities were rotated to ensure a well-rounded training and students were fully accountable for their performance.  Some students (apprentices) have already expressed the desire to find employment in the commercial workforce once private laboratories are created. Details related to program establishment, management and challenges will be presented and discussed.