C-Fern Kits (except the Meet the C-Fern Kit) are designed for classroom use by 30 students working individually or in groups, depending upon the exercise used. All kits come complete with spores (pre-sterilized and pre-weighed), petri dishes, pre-made C-Fern media, sterile water, sterile pipet(s), sterile spore spreader(s) and detailed directions for students and instructors. As needed, Kits include additional materials such as Culture Dome(s) or C-Fern Growth Pods, toothpicks, marking pen(s), microscope slides and coverslips, rulers, and foil bags. A hot water bath is needed to melt the nutrient agar prior to pouring into petri dishes and a stereomicroscope and/or compound microscope is necessary for viewing the developmental stages.For predictable C-Fern gametophyte development, cultures should be grown under continuous adequate lighting (provided by a simple 40W fluorescent lighting fixture) and at an internal Growth Pod or Culture Dome temperature of about 28 C. For independent investigations the following materials and supplies may be necessary.

Media Preparation(per liter of prepared medium)

• inorganic salts for Basic C-Fern Nutrient Media OR pre-packaged OR prepared Basic C-Fern Medium
• If using inorganic salts, supplies for weighing and preparing stock solutions (see Basic C-Fern Medium recipe)
• 1 liter volumetric flask
• 2 liter erlenmeyer
• volumetric measuring glassware (pipets, graduated cylinders)
• distilled, deionized water
• agar (Bacto-agar)
• pH meter and supplied for measuring and titrating pH
• autoclave or pressure cooker
• petri dishes
• laminar flow hood, sterile bench or equivalent

C-Fern Culture

• C-Fern spores: pre-sterilized or bulk, unsterilized
• If unsterilized spores, supplies for spore sterilization (see)
• sterile graduated conical tube
• sterile transfer pipet
• sterile distilled water
• petri dishes with Basic C-Fern Nutrient Medium
• sterile spore spreader
• marking pen
• Growth Pod or Culture Dome
• adequate lighting setup with internal Growth Pod or Culture Dome temperature of 28C
• thermometer (recommended)

C-Fern Observation

• stereomicroscope and/or compound microscope
• probes
• microscope slides and coverslips
• sterile distilled water