Use of a Selective Cellulose Agar for Isolation of Soil Fungi

Abstract

ADVANCES in soil microbiology have frequently been related to the development of selective isolation techniques. Such methods usually depend either on the provision of an energy source available only to a limited group of micro-organisms, or on the presence of an anti-microbial substance which allows a limited spectrum of micro-organisms to grow. Energy sources which have been studied by such methods include a range of monosaccharides, cellulose^1,2, chitin³, xylan⁴ and lignin⁵. The anti-microbial agents most widely used are the antibiotics, effective against various groups of soil organisms.