Friday’s seeds: Phacelia sericea

, ,

It is always exciting to find Phacelia sericea (Silky Phacelia, blue alpine phacelia, silky scorpion weed) in flower when hiking up in the mountains in mid to late summer (various mountain ranges of Western North America). It grows on dry, rocky slopes, near avalanche chutes and rocky forest openings, often in small groups or as single specimens. It is not difficult to recognize it after the deep-blue, violet flowers with exerted stamens and silvery aspect of the foliage (pinnatifid leaves with a covering of short, soft hairs).

Phacelia sericea in late July, Lizard Ranges, close to Fernie, SE BC

I had the luck to catch it in flower twice in the Rocky Mts. in SE British Columbia, and I even found older capsules with few seeds, which were preserved under the deep layer of snow.
I managed to grow a seedling which has developed nicely but then disappeared suddenly in the summer. As I understand, many others tried to grow it with the same outcome; even with a stellar drainage provided, muggy weather pose a big problem.

I will give it one more try this year. It is a warm germinator and the seedlings are not very difficult (it forms a taproot so it is best to plant the young seedlings in the rockery fast).

Phacelia sericea seeds aspect; the fruit is a capsule with 2 chambers

For other awesome species from the same location have a virtual weekend getaway – Weekend getaway: Lizard Ranges revisited.

 

*AN ILLUSTRATED KEY TO THE HYDROPHYLLACEAE OF ALBERTA
https://anpc.ab.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Hydrophyllaceae-2019-09.pdf

**Interesting read on Phacelia (don’t grab your shovel to go looking for gold :)
https://www.colorado.edu/asmagazine/2018/04/04/silky-phacelia-handsome-wildflower-special-talent

Gaultheria procumbens ‘fruit’ revealed

, ,

Later than expected, the seed stock for Gaultheria procumbens has been replenished. Some seeds are more difficult to extract and sort out than others, but speaking of the wintergreen, it is one of those species that I always postpone to start cleaning. And there is a good reason for it.

Everyone is familiar with the lovely urn-shaped white flowers of the wintergreen (rarely pink).

For those unfamiliar with the wintergreen, a presentation of this species was done a few years ago: Shining. The red, shiny fruits are commonly called berries. In more botanical inclined resources they are described as “berry-like capsules”. So, what is what?

Looking or opening a fresh wintergreen ‘berry’ will only reveal the seeds enclosed in a highly aromatic, white, mealy mass, which gives off a nice winterberry flavor (methyl salicylate), much stronger than the crushed leaves would. It is almost impossible to remove and sort out the seeds when they are fresh (at least by hand). The trick is to let them dry in a paper bag for a while, until the capsule gets differentiated from the mealy mass.

A picture will explain better what’s happening: the ovary gives rise to a small capsule and the calyx forms the actual red, edible covering/white, mealy underneath and will enclose the capsule, leaving a small opening (when dry). Hence the berry-like aspect of the ‘fruit’, that theoretically is a capsule, accompanied by a fleshy calyx (click to open the gallery).

Gaultheria procumbens fruits

Gaultheria procumbens fruit and seeds

Gaultheria procumbens seeds

*The genus Gaultheria comprises many species growing on various continents and besides fleshy calyces, some have real berries as fruits, while others present dry capsules. It has been suggested that the type of fruit in Gaultheria species has evolved in connection with their habitat. Species with fleshy calyces or berry fruits tend to occur in the forests/margins and clearings and may depend on the brightly colored and fleshy calyces or berries to attract animals, which act as dispersal agents by eating the fruits. Species with dry capsules often grow on more exposed sites and rely on wind dispersal. 

With this we say farewell to 2021. Thank you to all the regular readers and occasional visitors of the website.
Growing and learning more about plants, one fruit and seed at a time!
With hope that all our seeds will germinate & grow well and our gardens will be more beautiful than ever in 2022!

Happy New Year!

 

 

Friday’s Seeds: Rosaceae on the wind

,

“All the flowers of all the tomorrows are in the seeds of today” – with this being said (I don’t remember by whom), the Friday’s seeds series starts again. Rosa family is extremely large and diverse, with many ornamental species. Equally diverse are the fruits and seeds.

Apart from the well-known species with fleshy fruits many are familiar with, many others have dry fruits, of which some are adapted for wind dispersal. For this purpose, the styles remain attached to the fruit and begin to elongate after pollination; they also develop hairs in various amounts and many times the fluffy ‘seed-heads’ are nice additional ornamental features. The featured image shows the alpine Geum reptans with developing fruit-heads.

What we usually ‘seed’ is actually the fruit, which is an achene; inside it holds one seed. Few examples:
This year good fortune made it that we can compare two mountain avens species: Dryas octopetala and Dryas oxyodonta seeds.

Dryas octopetala seeds

Dryas oxyodonta seeds

Also, we can have a look at the Aleutian avens, Sierversia pentapetala seeds (syn. Dryas pentapetala).

Sieversia pentapetala seeds (syn. Dryas pentapetala)

The genus Geum contains a lot of species cultivated in the gardens. It would be hard to distinguish them after the ‘seeds’ but we can at least define the genus.
Geum triflorum (Prairie smoke) and Geum rivale (Nodding avens) shown.

Geum triflorum seeds

Geum rivale seeds

And, finally, something like a Geum on steroids if someone cares to google for plant pictures: Woronovia speciosa.

Woronovia speciosa

Drya octopetala

Sieversia pentapetala

Geum triflorum in June

Geum rivale

Preliminary results on Rubus chamaemorus germination – update 1

, ,

January 10, 2020
The first post on R. chamaemorus (December 2019): HERE

First, a simple, short presentation of the Rubus fruit so that we understand the photos. The fruit is an aggregate of drupes. Each drupe presents a fleshy part (intended as a reward for dispersers) and a ‘pyrene’ in which the seed is protected by the hard fruit endocarp similar to the peach stone. Inside the pyrene, there is a seed covered by a thin seedcoat.
The embryo in Rubus species is fully formed, showing a small radicle and two large cotyledons.

Rubus chamaemorus pyrene

The endocarp of the pyrene is very hard, reason for the difficulties in germinating the seeds.
We shall see how to remove it in a simple way and determine if the seeds germinate at warm or need a cold period, to clarify the contradictory existent sources. I realize now that this may be due to the fact that some people tried to germinate the pyrenes while others tried the actual seeds!
When sowing the pyrenes, 270 days of cold/moist stratification are said to be required for germination, meaning 2 years (Baskin & Baskin).

Two lots of pyrenes were used.
Lot#1 was soaked in water since Dec. 18, with the water changed once in a while.
Lot#2 was soaked and also treated with hot water twice at interval of one week (see the ‘hot water treatment’ post).

I sectioned the first few pyrenes last week just to see how it goes, but the germination experiment was started only two days ago; that means about 3 weeks of soaking in water.

The endocarps were removed with a scalpel under a magnifying lamp. The easy way to remove them is by making a small section on the curved side of the pyrene, towards the rounded end. This way you avoid damaging the embryo radicle, which is at the opposite end.

 Rubus chamaemorus; pyrenes showing where to section to remove the endocarp

Despite the recommendation of the article presented in the first post, I find no need for nicking the seedcoat, which is very thin and sometimes even slides out easily (especially in lot #2).

Findings: the pyrenes treated with hot water were definitely easier to cut than the ones only soaked in water. For lot# 2 some of the seeds were already soft, a sign that the soaking time was too long. It is clear that the hot water treatment is very effective, leading to fine fissures in the endocarp. The soaking time should be reduced a bit, maybe at two weeks.

After removing the endocarps, the seeds were placed right away in containers (with lids) prepared with a layer of moist vermiculite and a coffee filter on top; this will allow for easy observation. I borrowed the idea from a friend who used it for stratification of seeds in the fridge.

The seeds (some still with half of the endocarp) and the embryos are sitting on top of the coffee filter, which can be easily replaced in case some of them develop mold (quite possible)

Considering the aspect of lot#2 of pyrenes and seeds, I wonder if the hot water treatment (done a bit differently) may not be enough to allow the seeds to germinate (?). I still have a small lot of pyrenes and will start one more treatment right away.
Removing the endocarps is not a practical solution for large scale sowing, plus other Rubus species (all with hard endocarps) have very small pyrenes.

So, until the next update – let’s have the kettle going!

Special thanks: to Trond Hoy for providing the bakeapple seeds and to Keith Baldie for sharing with me his method of stratification.

The heart

, ,

While preparing orders last couple of days, I stumbled upon a perfectly heart shaped seed among Fritillaria atropurpurea stock.
I took it as a sign that I must also sow few seeds and put aside a tiny package for myself, heart included :)

Fritillaria atropurpurea seeds

 

There is one last pck. left for Fritillaria atropurpurea. All other Frits sold out at the moment, thank you – merci

 

Reminder: this is the best time to start sowing species that require cold/moist stratification!!!

Friday’s Seeds: Hylomecon seed please stand up

, ,

I meant to write about this a while ago; it was never a good time for it.
The question of how to easily recognize Hylomecon from the Stylophorum species had been long clarified and I see no point to repeat it all.
If you want/need to know how to correctly identify Hylomecon , Stylophorum diphyllum and Stylophorum lasiocarpum, please read this well written post on Garden Myths blog:
https://www.gardenmyths.com/hylomecon-japonica-which-is-the-real-plant/

Now that we know how to distinguish the species, with good close-up pictures of the seeds we can avoid to mistake one for another in the seeds exchanges ;)

If we would have the chance to look at fresh seeds, it wouldn’t be hard to distinguish them because the seeds are equipped with particular elaiosomes, quite beautiful in the case of S. diphyllum. Unfortunately after the seeds dry out, or after they are placed in moist storage, these fatty structures fade rapidly.

Regrettably Hylomecon vernalis (syn. H. japonica) rarely, if ever, sets seeds in cultivation in our region (and elsewhere, I understand).
I suspect there is a self- incompatibility problem, the majority of plants belonging to the same clone, which was vegetatively propagated over a long period of time.

I have watched it closely in my garden in the last two years hoping that maybe the others are just missing the seeds (the capsules are explosive). But no, the capsules form and seem OK, only to disappoint upon opening. You can imagine the excitement when I received H. vernalis seeds in late summer! And moist packed no less! Because of this I postponed washing them out to take proper pictures.

Let’s see a comparison now; all seeds after moist storage since late summer and on 1 mm grid.

Hylomecon vernalis (forest poppy): notice the glabrous capsule, seeds more or less 2 mm in lenght.

 

Stylophorum lasiocarpum (Chinese celandine poppy): notice the hairy capsules and smaller size seeds, always less than 2 mm

Stylophorum diphyllum, the NA woodland poppy: larger, ovoidal capsule and the largest seeds by comparison (most often 2+ mm)

 

Friday’s seeds with the GA3

,

I don’t aim to repeat here everything written about the gibberellic acid; most is easily accessible on the wide net. Anyone interested in plants knows that gibberellins are plant hormones which control various processes and the synthetic forms of the gibberellic acid are used in the horticultural industry for various purposes: from seed germination to inducing early flowering, fruit set, hybridization, and so on.

For those who never use it and/or are at the beginning of their growing from seeds journey, I will emphasize a few practical aspects about preparing and using a GA3 solution for home sowing by describing precisely what I do.

First, sources of GA3:  google and you shall find :)
Every year there are various on-line offerings of powder GA3. I do not want to advertise for one source or another, just a warning: if something looks too cheap, it may not be the best quality.

How to use GA3

In powder form – many still employ this method although it is not as reliable as a prepared solution. Personally I don’t use the powder treatment; you cannot be sure of the concentration applied and if the seeds will absorb it equally.
 Nevertheless, it’s easy to apply. One of the most common methods is to place the seeds on a moist folded piece of paper towel or a coffee filter and to add the GA3 (the amount taken on a toothpick tip). Place everything inside a plastic bag and keep it there until next day; then, sow the seeds right away.

Solution – if you want to be sure about the concentration, it is advisable to use it as a solution. The suitable concentrations to promote seed germination vary among different species, and there are still many species for which we don’t know if their germination would be better with GA3.

Many times you just need to experiment. I noticed from my experience and reading lots of articles on seed germination that good results can be obtained using concentrations from 250 ppm to 1000 ppm.

It is not difficult to prepare your own solution: best is to make a basic 1000 ppm solution and then use it as such or at lower concentrations by dilution.

 How to prepare your basic 1000 ppm GA3 solution (assuming you have GA3 98% purity)

The basic stock solution of 1000 ppm (parts per million) is prepared by dissolving GA3 in water at a rate of 1mg (1000 mg= 1 g) in 1 ml (1000 ml= 1 l).

Therefore, if you buy one packet of 100 mg GA3, it will have to be dissolved in 100 ml of water to obtain a 1000 ppm solution; 200 mg in 200 ml and so on….
For home use I don’t think anyone needs more than 100 ml, so let’s do this:

Have handy: your powder GA3 100 mg, 100 ml distilled water (tap water OK too), little amount of alcohol (purest ethanol possible), and a clean 100 ml (or larger) bottle for the final solution. I use the water at room temperature.

Bottle with GA3 solution

Add the powder and maybe ¼ of the water, plus a few drops of alcohol in the bottle and start shaking well; be patient; add more of the water and keep shaking. If the GA3 doesn’t dissolve well, add a few more drops of alcohol; shaking, shaking….20(30) min. should do it.

If after all this the powder has not entirely dissolved it means the GA3 you bought had many impurities.

So you have your 1000 ppm solution.
Label your 1000 ppm GA3 bottle and keep it in the fridge. Don’t forget that this is a chemical substance after all, and it shouldn’t be kept in containers without a clear label. The solution remains active for at least 2 years, probably even longer, but of course its efficacy will decrease.

To prepare a 500 ppm solution, extract any given quantity from the 1000 ppm sol. and add the same quantity of water, all in a separate bottle (don’t forget to label it).

What to treat with GA3?

Think first about what kind of seeds you are sowing and which are their germination requirements.

GA3 is often used to replace the cold period required by various species for seeds germination (cold/moist stratification) and to speed up germination in general.
Therefore, if you live in a warm climate, you are running short of time, or want to speed up the process, you can use it for these purposes.
Warning: it does not always work; don’t be disappointed. For some species even very cold winters won’t do the trick to break seeds dormancy.
Also, sometimes, it is necessary to use a combination of treatments.

For those living in a climate with cold winters, it is much simpler and even better to sow and provide the cold/moist stratification outdoors over the winter.

For Aconitum spp. (and other Ranunculaceae species which have seeds with immature embryos), GA3 has been found useful to promoting embryo growth, so indirectly it will improve germination.

It also comes in handy when sowing older seeds, which may have a lower germination capacity.

There is no point to use GA3 for any kind of seeds. For example, in the case of species with very hard/impermeable seed coats (Fabaceae), using GA3 makes no difference because it cannot be absorbed.

Applying the treatment

Prepare a few small containers (bottle caps, small holders, yoghurt cups…), place your seeds inside and pour GA3 solution on top, just enough to cover the seeds. For larger size seeds, you can also use small plastic bags. I usually leave the seeds in solution until next day.
Important: have everything ready and sow the next day after the treatment; water the pots well, and place at warm or cold as required.

GA3 treatment and sowing the seeds afterwards; sow as usual, next day after treating the seeds

For tiny, fine seeds (Saxifraga for example) it’s more practical to place the seeds on a piece of paper towel, soak it with GA3 solution, fold the paper and keep it in a plastic bag until next day; before sowing, just squeeze the paper towel and then it will be easy to shake the seeds on top of the potting mix. Likewise, a pipette/syringe can be used to collect and distribute the small seeds on the mix.

Side effects: one common side effect is that the seedlings will grow elongated and weak, especially if the concentration was too strong and/or the seed coats remain attached to the cotyledons (in this case cover the pot with a moist paper towel, and you can remove the seed coats after they get soft); Gentiana lutea seedlings after GA3 treatment.

 

What I am using it for?

I had my share of using GA3 just for fun, like many others probably. Right now I sometime use GA3:

On experimental purpose when reliable germination info is not available and for older seeds to test the germination capacity, especially for small size seeds.

On a more regular base for:

Glaucidium palmatum: there is a bit of controversy in this case and after I have germinated seeds for a few years and also heard other people’s experiences, it is fair to say that this is a species with combined morpho-physiological dormancy: from any given batch, some seeds will germinate at warm, some only after a cold period. I find that with a GA3 treatment I obtain a better germination at warm (but a few seeds will still germinate only next year after one more warm/cold period).

One can easily sow Glaucidium without GA3 in late fall/winter and provide cold/moist stratification; some seeds will germinate in the following spring, some in the second year.

Podophyllum hexandrum – for the Chinese mayapple,  the treatment with GA3 will induce germination with the true leaves, thus speeding up the process; in the second image – seedlings obtained with GA3 treatment in the first summer.

Podophyllum hexandrum seeds -GA3

Podophyllum hexandrum seedlings GA3

Aquilegia species:  only because I start my Aquilegia species indoors; I use 500 ppm GA3 to promote a good, uniform germination (but you can easily provide Aquilegia with cold/moist stratification and obtain good germination).Aquilegia nigricans germinated seeds

Sometimes for Gentiana species: some will germinate well when treated with 500- 1000 ppm GA3 (G. lutea, G. purpurea).

 

I also got good results for Rhodiola spp., few Thalictrum species (to speed up the germination), Androsace villosa (and subsp. of villosa).

Germinating right now after GA3 treatment and short term cold/dark – Androsace barbulata. I noticed them a bit too late but they will green up under ligths.

Androsace barbulata seedlings

 

For Aconitum dry stored seeds; some Aconitum species will not germinate after the seeds get too dry, and I am trying to see if/how GA3 can induce/improve their germination; read more and see images: Starting notes on Aconitum germination.

Conclusion: to use it or not to use it?

Keep in mind that GA3 is not a ‘miracle’ solution for all the seeds dormancy/germination related problems.
It is definitely an aid for seeds germination and we can have fun experimenting, but anyone can very well grow plants from seeds without the help of GA3.

 

 

 

Fridays seeds – GA3 short preview

,

With this and that time goes by and the post about GA3 for the seeds treatments series is not ready.
I offer a short preview from the section: What am I using it for?

“I had my share of using GA3 just for fun, like many others probably. Right now I am using GA3 on a regular base just for few species (like Glaucidium, Podophyllum hexandrum…), in experimental purpose when reliable germination info is not available and for older seeds to test their germination capacity/viability (especially for small size seeds)”.

Treated with GA3 and sown experimental: Primula glaucescens, because it’s a bit late for outdoor cold/moist stratification and I found an article reporting good germination using GA3. It is Fridays Seeds, so here’s one more picture with soaked seeds :)

Primula glaucescens seeds soaked in GA3

Testing for: Primula minima and  Soldanella pusilla – wild coll. seeds in 2017. I don’t know how long they keep good germination capacity and before I rush to collect a larger quantity of such seeds it would be good to know.

GA3 seeds treatment and a flower for all readers :)                                             

Explanations in more detail next time…And, more flowers because we need them badly.

Primula minima and Soldanella pusilla in wild habitat, Carpathian Mts.

 

Friday’s seeds: Clematis hexapetala

,

and Clematis lancifolia?

A very good way to welcome February with new seeds, collected and arrived from far away: Primorye (Far East Russia).
With pubescent achenes and plumose styles, Clematis hexapetala came well prepared for this frigid weather. Seeds available in the shop soon!

Clematis hexapetala, wild collected seeds

And here’ s a picture with this beautiful shrubby Clematis in culture:

Clematis hexapetala

I also hope this to be a good occasion to clarify the situation of another Clematis, grown from a seeds exchange as C. hexapetala. Seeds are probably still going around as such. The flowers are similar but not difficult to notice that the leaves are different:  simple or ternate  (1- or 2-pinnatisect  for C. hexapetala).

Using Flora of China I can only classify it as Clematis cf. lancifolia but overall there is little info available about it. I look forward to hear other opinions (http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=200007666)
See the gallery below (more photos available on request).

Clematis cf. lancifolia flowers

Clematis cf. lancifolia leaves

Clematis cf. lancifolia leaves2

Clematis cf. lancifolia seeds

More about seeds treatments for sowing: GA3, hot water and scarifying, next week.

Friday’s seeds – soak, cut & nick

,

A timely post; these methods may come in handy for all those sowing or preparing to sow at this time of year.
They are not mandatory, one can just sow and be patient; any viable seeds will germinate when the time is right for them.

The purpose of these methods can vary: to check on the status of seeds/embryo, soften the seed/fruit teguments, improve and/or speed up the germination. They can be used for medium to large size seeds but not practical for small and tiny seeds.

Let’s remember first that in order to survive in a dry state over extended periods of unfavorable conditions, all seeds are equipped with +/- impermeable seed coats. Without going into a review of seeds dormancy types, in all cases, the first thing necessary for the ‘awakening’ process, is water absorption/imbibition.
Some seeds can absorb water fast when available, and if also the temperature is optimal, they germinate rapidly; in other cases, this process can take longer, up to many years in fact.

SOAKING

Soaking the seeds in water over various periods of time mimics the natural conditions they would encounter in the fall or spring when the soil moisture is abundant. It is recommended to daily change the water.
Soaking can be done for various purposes: just to hydrate the seeds/fruit teguments or for further exploration; also, it is much easier to proceed with the cutting or nicking after seed coats are soften a bit.

To speed up the water imbibition and thus the processes that initiate the germination.

Also, soaking the seeds for a couple of days will allow for a better absorption of GA3.

As recently shown, in case of Ephedra distachya, simply soaking the seeds triggered their germination (thin seed coats, warm germinator).

For seeds with impermeable coats, just soaking won’t suffice, of course and it needs to be combined with other treatments, like nicking or scarification for example (about scarification next time).

Ruscus colchicus seeds: slighly scarified and soaked for few days; dry seeds to the right. Notice that the seeds have enlarged 2-3 times in size in a very short period of time

CUTTING (SECTIONS)

This is an exploratory method done to visually inspect the status of the insides of seeds/fruits. It allows a quick assessment of the viability/status of the embryo.
The cutting can be done transversal or longitudinal, it depends on the purpose and type of seed/fruit. In all cases it should reveal a whitish/yellowish inside, usually the endosperm in which the embryo is embedded, like shown in the pictures below (in case of immature embryos, they cannot be observed unless using a microscope).
In the case of exalbuminate seeds (no endosperm), the cut will just go through the embryo itself.

Lindera benzoin, sectioned seed

For Caulophyllum species it is an useful method to monitor the embryo development (on seeds kept in moist storage!).

Notice the growth of the embryo over time, in the second year it resemble a small grub :)

In some cases the cut through fruits/seeds can reveal that they are sterile/empty. For species known to have pollination/fertilization problems it is always good to test a small batch of seeds/fruits. Acer triflorum and Franklinia alatamaha case studies are shown below.

Cutting also allows a quick inspection of the thickness of seed coats/fruit wall and provides hints for further treatments. See the case of Triosteum aurantiacum, where the very thick fruit tegument suggests further action in order to allow the water imbibition (scarification).

The very thick/hard fruit wall explains why the seeds would need few years to germinate in natural conditions; by scarifiying as much as possible the fruit wall to allow water penetration to the seed, will speed up the germination


A special method of cutting the seeds can be used to speed up germination for aril Irises. It involves cutting a thin piece from the micropilar end of the seed.
The method is explained in detail HERE. I am currently trying it on a small batch of Iris suaveolens BDob.17 (offered in 2917) and the results are promising!

Iris suaveolens BDob17 – germination start 1 week after the seeds cut (as described in the method above)

NICKING

It involves nicking or chipping of a small area of the seed coat. It is easily done on large seeds with impermeable seed coats.

However, impermeable doesn’t necessarily means thick, and nicking always needs to be done with care.
You would be surprised for example how thin is the seed coat of lotus seeds (Nelumbo species)!
And remember, these are seeds that can maintain their viability for thousands of years!

If a small part of the endosperm/cotyledons is nicked accidentally, it is usually OK.

 

To be continued…’tis the sowing season!

 

 

 

Friday’s Seeds, and flowers – the bean family

,

About Fabaceae (i.e. Leguminosae) this Friday: seeds and not only. This is a gigantic family with many species of agricultural and ornamental importance. But we can have a glimpse at various seeds/fruits, ponder at their diversity and remember some of the plants and their flowers.
The page is published and those interested can found it on the Seeds Library menu Here

Being such a cold winter day I will help with remembering few flowers :)
Hover with the mouse over images to see the names.

Lathyrus vernus – pink flowers

Echinops crispus with Anthyllis vulneraria var. coccinea

Cercis canadensis

Caragana pygmaea flowers

Oxytropis halleri

Hedysarum grandiflorum

Baptisia australis

Thermopsis villosa

Amphicarpaea bracteata flowering

From the practical point of view I am sure many know that seeds from this family will germinate better/faster after scarification or treatment with hot water.

First Fridays Seeds 2019

,

Best wishes to all readers for successful plant growing and beautiful gardens in 2019!

For today, a germinating seed of Paeonia wendelboi – a bridge between the past year and the present one.

Paeonia wendelboi germinating seed (at warm); the root appeared in winter 2018 (it was very tiny but nothing escapes my magnifying glass, or so I like to think). The shoot will start to grow only after a cold period, the way it goes with most peonies.

And a message, seeds speaking generally:

Do not forget  that this is the perfect time for sowing species which require cold/moist stratification!
If done too late, especially in the case of a mild winter, the cold period won’t suffice and the seeds will need one more cold cycle to germinate.

I would like to draw your attention especially to a few moist packed seeds.
Beside the fact that for a very good price you can get seeds which will most likely germinate, by comparison with sowing them dry, some, like Aconitum spp. , may be an one time offer. Others, like Thalictrum thalictroides, which require more driving to the collection site, will be offered only on alternate years.

Even with the garden collected seeds, it can happen to miss the seeds of species like Saruma henryi.
Thus, it is always best to get these kind of seeds when available.

You can easily find them all by browsing the Moist packed Seeds and Corydalis Seeds categories.

Belated Fridays Seeds: Paeonia brownii

, ,

I forgot about the Fridays Seeds :o
In my defense, I was trying to finish the first batch of winter sowings, before other/new seeds arrive. Being end of the month I also had to check all the remaining moist packed seeds, kept at cold or warm.

A leisurely Saturday is a good occasion to show the seeds of Paeonia brownii.
I didn’t show them before because all seeds that arrived were presold and none of them made it to the online shop inventory. With more requests left unsatisfied I didn’t want to aggravate the situation.

Paeonia brownii is one of the only two North American peony species and it has different seeds than the ones we are more used seeing. I would call it the Cinderella of the peonies (seeds wise) because they are nothing but attractive, especially when dry: brownish and large with an irregular shape.

In the rush of the moment I even missed to take pictures of the dry seeds; the ones shown here are already in moist packing since late October (kept at warm).

Paeonia brownii seeds: kept in moist storage since late October. Moist seeds should not be left to dry out at any moment, hence only a quick picture with the seeds on moist towel ;)

Those interested can read more and see pictures of this intriguing peony species HERE.

Starting notes on Aconitum germination – 2018

,

Yesterday I sowed the first Aconitum seeds of the season! – a good occasion to also publish this post, drafted since late spring.

Aconitum is a large genus with many beautiful species, usually growing in mountainous regions of the Northern Hemisphere, popularly known as wolf’s banes or monkshoods. Many know that they are toxic/medicinal species, but more than that they are highly valued as garden plants.

Like many other species from fam. Ranunculaceae they can prove difficult to germinate from dry stored seeds. Most often it is not possible to moist pack the seeds right away; some collectors are not aware of the requirement or they are unwilling to do it because it is too tedious.

Experienced growers from all over the world will confirm the fact that dry kept seeds of various Aconitum species will generally germinate poorly/germinate in the second year after sowing, or in many cases will never germinate.

My intention is to compile a list for Aconitum species showing their germination pattern when using fresh, moist packed or dry seeds. Knowing which species retain good germination capacity even after their seeds are kept dry for a given amount of time would be very useful.

Generally speaking, we know for sure few facts about Aconitum seeds/germination:
– at the time of seed collecting the embryos are underdeveloped
– the germination can’t occur until the embryos reach a certain size, usually after a period of cold/moist stratification.
– GA3 treatment can promote embryo growth for some species, and thus can be useful in combination with the cold/moist period.

The list below was compiled from my own data and supplied by others on the Scottish Rock Garden Forum, where you can also find a thread open on this subject. Feel free to contribute.

 

And few pictures with various Aconitum species that germinated this spring (2018), in the second year after sowing (dry seeds, GA3 treatment), seedlings, new seeds and the new batch of Aconitum sowings!

Aconitum species germinated 2018

Aconitum alboviolaceum seedlings 2018

Aconitum moldavicum seeds

Aconitum species sown Dec. 2018

Few Aconitum species  will be available late next week!

 

Friday’s Seeds – Callirhoe and the mericarps

, ,

I always strive to make sure the quality of seeds at BotanyCa is top notch. When a few seeds remain available for a given species, it becomes even more an important issue. Such was the case for Callirhoe digitata (Fam. Malvaceae) yesterday.

What we usually call seeds are actually mericarps, parts of a dry fruit called schizocarp; they contain 1 seed each. However, some mericarps can be empty or contain a malformed seed; not too many were left, so a closer look was necessary.

I would like to emphasize that for the purpose of sowing it’s not necessary to extract the seeds from the mericarps.
Reason I did this: to make sure how many good seeds are still available and, to take & show pictures with the actual seeds.

Callirhoe digitata (Fringed poppy mallow, standing wine cup) – mericarps and seeds

Another similar species, seeds wise, is Iliamna rivularis – Streambank wild hollyhock.
In this case each mericarp contains 2-3(4) seeds, shown below.

Iliamna rivularis seeds

Iliamna rivularis flowers

 

The return to Bukiniczia

,

With the help of a new magnifier lamp (a super dark November had something to do with this), I went slowly through all the Bukiniczia calyces (which are usually called ‘seeds’: read Next please – Bukiniczia cabulica).
I did not count precisely but I can tell that +/-20% of them presented seeds. This percentage may of course be different for other clones.

You can find the seeds in the shop now – Bukiniczia cabulica
2 pck/order are allowed; this way those who don’t desire other seeds can order using the low shipping rates.

This is how Bukiniczia SEEDS look like:

Bukiniczia cabulica seeds

*A reminder that products in The Seeds List can display out of stock temporarily until the inventory is replenished.

**When you receive whole calyces as ‘seeds’ for Bukiniczia, Armeria, Limonium, Acantholimon (and possibly others from Plumbaginaceae), check to see if there are actually any seeds before sowing.