Micropropagation

Hargreaves Plants' micropropagation facility is located at the main site at Cowpers Gate, Long Sutton.  The laboratory performs a number of operations for the company but can be split into two main areas; in-house propagation of mother stock and finished plants; contract work for other businesses.  Further, the laboratory aids the company to control the quality of parent plant material for nursery and field production and is also utilized by the Research and Development Dept to fast-track new varieties from other breeders.

The company is now in a position to accept contracted work from other propagators for both fruit plants and some ornamental species, due to increased experience in these plant types.  Hargreaves Plants welcomes all initial enquiries regardless of whether large or small volumes of plants are required, since this is an excellent way of fast-tracking species which are under threat, or indeed newly discovered such as 'sports' or mutations of known varieties.  Minimum volumes are put in place when new contracts for propagation are placed.

The high standards of health and hygiene within the laboratory have led to ISO Accreditation and the laboratory is also inspected annually by PHPS (Plant Health Inspection body which is a division of FERA (DEFRA)).  This body is also used to certify the health status of plant material after propagation but before release to the customer, whether internal or external, again by inspection.  It is the company' s policy to use the highest health grade available, usually Nuclear, Foundation or Super Elite, as initiation stocks to ensure the best quality finished product is possible.

The overall management of the facility is under the control of the Research and Development manager, Jane Fairlie, who has previous experience in various crops from SCRI in Scotland.

For further enquiries, please email janef@hargreavesplants.com.