Wiesner Staining for Visualizing Lignin: A Technique to Stain Lignin Deposits Present in Stems of Arabidopsis Thaliana

For Phloroglucinol staining, transfer the stem sections to a microcentrifuge tube. Add 1 milliliter of the phloroglucinol solution to the tube, and cap it immediately because the hydrochloric acid in the phloroglucinol stain is highly corrosive. Gently move the tube to ensure that all the sections are stained. Gently pipette the sections into a cut pipette tip, and onto a microscope slide. Cover the sections with a coverslip. Observe the sections under bright-field lighting. The solution dries up in 5 to 10 minutes causing a deterioration of the specimens, therefore, the imaging has to be completed within that period of time.