Where online can i order agar plates with the red stuff in them?
You need to be more specific on what you want to grow. Different bacteria have different nutritional requirements. Also, some types of agar contains substances that will inhibit certain kinds of bacteria while allowing others to grow. As far as growing them on plates, swab a small area of the plate with your sample swab, then smear it out with a sterile loop so the sample gets smeared out thinner and thinner. That way, you’ll be able to get individual colonies. Incubating the plates depends again on what you want to grow, but for many species, 35 degrees Celsius is a good place to start. Since light is harmful to some species, they’re best grown in the dark. There are lots of commercial media suppliers out there. The trick is getting them to sell to individuals. It would be best to have your science teacher explain that you’re doing this for educational purposes and are not trying to make a biological weapon and are not a threat to homeland security.
Do you mean this kind of agar: At least one side of all of our industrial dipslides is coated with Nutrient Agar to which a small quantity of the dye 2,3,5- triphenyltetrazolium (TTC) is added. Aerobic bacteria species grow on this medium and they can be detected by their ability to reduce TTC to a red colored formozan dye. Bacterial colonies appear as red dots on an otherwise clear colorless medium, rendering them easily recognizable by persons untrained in microbiology.” (SOLAR Biologicals Inc.) There are several producers of ready-to-use dipslides and dried agars which contain this compound. Examples: EasiCult (ORIOLA, Finland) PetriFilm (3M) Dry-Cult (?) Good luck to find the right product!
agar is a pretty good way to watch the bacteria colonies grow, if you keep them in a small tube they will get really concentrated and compete for nutrients, it is best if you place them in agar plates under the right temperature conditions, try looking on ebay or you could also check laboratory websites that sell agar plates.
