Transplanting/caring for Hepatica seedlings

You purchased Hepatica seeds at the proper time (June) and patiently waited for germination 1- 2 years (in extreme case even 3!) (see Hepatica seeds germination).

Now you are looking at the seedlings, which may remain at the cotyledon leaves stage for the first season; others will grow true leaves. In either case, they can be quite tiny and intimidating. In fact, they are not difficult at all to handle.

When to transplant?

One feature of Hepatica is that they put up a good growth in the spring through summer (roots, leaves, seeds, future flower buds) and then they take a ‘break’ until next year. For this reason I like to transplant in early spring or if not, in the fall; at least, the young plants will start the next season already well prepared.

What potting mix to use?
There are various recipes recommended by Hepatica growers. Unfortunately, most are not easy to reproduce exactly here. I’ve tried to mix various products available in the last years and some were better than others. What I want in the end is to have an easy to reproduce recipe using soil brands anyone can buy (in Canada).

I came up with this mix, which I think is pretty good: mix all ingredients in equal parts (1:1:1)

Perlite
Pro-mix potting soil
All-purpose potting mix:  Fafard brand is a good one. Unfortunately, most recently this brand also contains too much peat and despite listing it, I doubt there is any sand added. One can tell also after the weight of a bag how much peat it contains.
Hopefully one day t
his sector of the landscape industry will be regulated; most brands don’t specify the contents of the potting mix; in almost in all cases they contain too much peat and/or shredded bark.

For Hepatica, as a rule, as long as good drainage is ensured, all should be well.  Other soil mix combinations can be tried, don’t forget to add perlite for the drainage.

 Pots

Taller pots are preferable. You can basically use any type/size of pot proportionally sized in regards to the seedlings size and transplant 1-2 seedling/pot.
To avoid handling many individual small pots one can also use a rectangular planter instead. Another option is a compact-tray with a good height.

Transplanting step by step

Remove the seedlings from the sowing pot and carefully separate them. As seen in the pictures, Hepatica seedlings have a fine root system.
Transfer the seedlings in a new pot, add mix and take care to press only around the roots.You can try 1 seedling/pot, or 2-3 together, if space is a problem. The watering will settle down the mix well (add more mix if necessary). If available, cover with a thin layer of top up (grit, fine gravel, even vermiculite….).

Clockwise: Hepatica acutiloba pastel mix – seedlings removed from the pot; Hepatica japonica transplanted, flowering seedling, H. acutiloba pastel mix seedlings showing the roots; compact-tray with H. nobilis and H. acutiloba seedlings

Location
Same like for adult plants, keep the pots/trays in a location with plenty of sun in the spring and shade starting summer. If necessary cover them with a plastic mesh. Water when necessarily (deep watering and let dry between) if the pots are not exposed to rain; a light fertilizer during the spring growth is beneficial.

Planting in the ground
Usually in the third year the seedlings  can be planted in the ground if container culture is not an option. Like with many other species, I lost more young plants by keeping them in pots too long than when planted in the garden.
Growing from seeds is nice because the resulting seedlings give  you the option to try growing them in different ways and in various locations in the garden.

To continue growing in pots transplant again to a larger size pot/container. Hepatica species are fitted for large container growing, and if you have a small garden, or unsuitable soil conditions then give it a try. You can easily provide sun in the spring and shade starting summer by moving the container in different spots.

Most often the first flower will appear in the third year to reward your efforts!

Various forms of Hepatica japonica 3 years-old plants

*I referred in general to Hepatica because in the end, as far as I noticed, there is no difference between various species when it comes to germinating the seeds and transplanting the seedlings (H. americana, H. acutiloba, H. nobilis, H. japonica and H. henryi).