Let me explain about evergreen Epimediums

While waiting for Jeffersonia diphylla capsules to open and the heat dome to go away, I will write a bit about the evergreen Epimedium species. Seeds will be offered soon and I know that not everyone is familiar with them/growing from seeds.
Years ago I had quite a few articles about some Chinese Epimediums on the website which I subsequently deleted because of the amount of spam generated by the tags attached. Because you see, the evergreen Epimedium species, which are of Chinese origin, are commonly called fairy-wings or barenworts (like the European and Japanese Epimediums), and also horny-goats weeds, supposedly because one of theirs medicinal properties ;) Enough said…

From all Epimediums I particularly like this group of species because of their evergreen, leathery handsome foliage and spidery-looking flowers. Musing on species that maintain a nice presence over the winter, I once described the evergreen Epimediums the next best thing to the Helleborus: Winter joys II.

Then, ‘the best is yet to come’ with the new spring foliage being incredibly ornamental in various shades of purple, salmon, or mottled, before turning green later. The spidery flowers might be a personal like, but I noticed that other people enjoy them too.

I acquired a few of the available species, and after a few years when I noticed capsules on Epimedium ‘Amber Queen’, I said: how about trying to grow more from seeds? I had no idea about their requirements for germination and there was little to no info about the subject. This fantastic cultivar is in fact a hybrid resulted from a cross: E. wushanense ’Caramel’ x Epimedium flavum.

The most prolific seeds producer was/is always Epimedium ‘Amber Queen’ which I suspect it cross-pollinated, at the beginning, with Epimedium lishihchenii planted nearby.
Now there are more hybrids around the garden, and it may be a swarm of cross-hybridization going around. There is no ‘ flight control tower’ for the bumblebees :-) Which takes me to the third reason I love them: the flowers with long spurs are in high demand in the spring (around May here) for the long tongue pollinators.
Other evergreen species growing in the garden are Epimedium acuminatum, Epimedium stellulatum and Epimedium brachyrrhizum, so there are more cross-pollinations possibilities.

To state the obvious: all plants grown from seeds will be the result of cross-pollination.

Growing from seeds it is also the method of obtaining new commercially cultivars after careful selection. In the garden, one can keep whatever finds suitable and discard away the unwanted (flowers-wise). Most will produce a few flowers in 3-4 years so it’s a quick process.

I also found myself in the position to giving names to a few of the most deserving specimens, all chance seedlings; labels are needed when sharing divisions with friends :-)

Garden cultivation: plant them in part-shaded locations (especially shade for the afternoon in a hot climate). After many years, I consider the most commonly cultivated species to be quite drought resistant (occasional watering during drought), just that they will flower better having more moisture.
The evergreen foliage can became unsightly by early spring (depending on climate and in snowless winters); remove it  only in late spring because it protects the flowering stems, which show up at ground level early and can be damaged by late frosts.
Most species grow from a tight rhizome, so if you want to divide them, dig out the whole clump and carefully take out a rhizome ‘slice’ in late spring/summer and grow it in a pot until fall to build up the roots. The spreading types are more easily divided, but even so they require a season or two to get back in shape.

Propagation by seeds: the seeds seem to be hydrophilic and require a warm stratification followed by a cold stratification in order to germinate; sow them fresh in the summer and then allow a cold (winter) period.

As shown in the image, they are still green when the capsule splits open and are equipped with large elaiosomes, which will dry out in a few days, while the seed coats will mature and become brownish. For sowing we should follow the same procedures as with Hepatica seeds.

It seems that the seeds only need +/- 2 month of cold stratification, so if you keep the pots in a cold garage, for example, they may start to germinate in February (even earlier depending on the climate). To avoid this, keep the pots outdoors for the winter for spring germination. Self-sown seedlings appear in the spring every year now.

If you use indoor lighting, you can get a head start for the season; the seedlings grow fast and are very easy-going under lights.

Again, as a thank you to all customers (ask in the note) seeds will be offered complementary with all orders coming in with the next wave of fresh seeds (while quantities last).

Likewise, those who only want Epimedium seeds  will be able to purchase them.
I hope to convert at least few people of growing them from seeds. Nice surprises await those willing to try!