To Protect Fruit Crops, Scientists Are Putting Them Into A Deep Freeze
In an effort to save irreplaceable varieties from disease and other threats, plant cuttings are being "cryopreserved" — plunged into liquid nitrogen for later revival.
From Cara Cara oranges to clementines, California's farmers deliver novel navels, mandarins and tangelos.
But the state's growers have watched with worry as the devastating disease known as citrus greening has crippled Florida's citrus industry. It's a threat not just to California's orange industry, but to the collection of rare, wild and heirloom varieties used to breed new crops that the U.S. Department of Agriculture currently "stores" in the state.
This collection of varieties in Norway.
