Plant tissue culture has a long history, dating back to the work of Gottlieb Haberlandt and others at the end of the 19th century, but the associated concepts and techniques have reached a level of usefulness and application which has never been greater. The technical innovations have given new insights into fundamental aspects of plant differentiation and development, and have paved the way to the identification of strategies for the genetic manipula­ tion of plants. It is the aim of this manual to deliver a broad range of these techniques in a form which is accessible to students and research scientists of diverse backgrounds, including those with little or no previous experience. The themes of the manual aim to reflect those research areas which have been advanced by tissue culture technology. As was the case for the sister volume Plant Molecular Biology Manual, the objective has been from the start to produce a manual which is at home on the laboratory bench. The plastic-covered, ring-bound format has proved to be most popular and is retained here. Equally, the emphasis has been on producing a collection of detailed step-by-step protocols, each supplemented with an introductory text and practical footnotes, to provide the next best thing to a supervisor at one's shoulder.