I am a technician who propagates orchids using axenic techniques in KFBG’s orchid micropropagation laboratory and culture room. To maximise genetic diversity in our seedlings, we propagate only from seed. This requires hand-pollinating plants in our living collection or collecting capsules from the wild, and then inoculating the minute seeds onto an agar-based medium in sterile glassware. Every year, I produce thousands of seedlings representing dozens of rare species.