Slide or Coverslip Culture
The oldest and most widely used method of tissue culture is slide or coverslip culture. It is used for morphological studies and micrographic investigations. The fragment of tissue (explant) is placed onto a coverslip, which is subsequently inverted over the cavity of a depression slide. The technique is relatively simple and inexpensive. Live cells are spread out in a manner suitable for microscopy and photography. Since cells grow directly on the coverslip, it can be fixed and stained to make permanent slides.

Using slide culture, only a very small amount of tissue can be cultured. Since supply of oxygen and nutrients are exhausted rapidly, the medium becomes acidic. So, rapidly growing tissue is to be transferred to new medium. Moreover sterility cannot be maintained for a long period.