The embryos can be further cultured until they are big enough to be transferred into soil. Researchers are even developing methods of drying the embryos and coating them, in effect, creating artificial seeds. Somatic embryogenesis is used to produce seedlings for reforestation. Trees with superior characteristics can be identified and copied with relative ease, without having to wait a decade or more while the tree grows to seed-producing age. Microspore Embryogenesis Microspore embryogenesis is another method that researchers have developed to grow plants without seeds.
Microspores are groups of cells that are in the process of becoming pollen grains.
If they are removed from the plant and placed in a culture medium containing special chemicals, they will begin embryogenesis into plants. Cells that are formed by this process are unique - they are haploid , that is they have only half the number of chromosomes of normal cells. It is only after treatment with another chemical that the chromosomes double, or become diploid . The plant can then grow normally. Microspore embryogenesis offers a great advantage because exact copies can be grown using DNA from a single superior plant and because the desired traits can be produced much more quickly, sometimes in less than a year.