2019 From seed

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Thanks Leo. I have two oaks which sprouted leaves with no stratification. What do you make of that?

Those two oaks did not read the damn books. They obviously didn't know they were not supposed to grow.

There are always the odd exception.

Actually, if you plant hundreds of seeds you will see many different variations. So a few not following the rules is no surprise. These exceptions are part of how plants from seed adapt to changing environments. Some seed will always sprout without stratification. Some seed will require more than one season of stratification to sprout. This ensures something survives in case of mother nature throwing the tree a curve.

 

[eryk2kartman]

Guys, need a small advice

I checked the seeds that im stratifying in the fridge, some of the prunuses have already open shells and in some roots start to coming out.
I think i cant keep them in the fridge anymore, so i was thinking to plant them outdoors in the tray, but my question is - i will probably get couple of days with frost(like today), is it good idea to do it ? or maybe it would be better to keep them in the unheated green house?
With green house im afraid that high temp in there will make the seeds to grow and if i get more frost in future it might damage seedlings.

Could you advice?

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

The seed will keep in the refrigerator. They will not root. They will grow very slow. I always hold sprouting seed in refrigerator until after average last frost date.

 

[eryk2kartman]

Sweet, thats the best option i guess.
Thanks a mill

 

[Nybonsai12]

Zelkovas moving along, probably have about 40 or so. Gonna have to figure out what to do with them. Still have another batch of seed stratifying too!

And the first cork oak has joined the party. I’m sure some others are not far behind.

 

[leatherback]

Ohw.. Cork oak seeds! never thought about that! Cool idea. Need to get some!

 

[Cattwooduk]

I bought some maple seeds from Herons Bonsai. I know ideal time to plant them 'naturally' without stratification in the fridge would have been heading into autumn but I wasn't going to bother this year. I'd tried a couple of times stratifying in the fridge and had no luck. However after watching Peter's YouTube video on growing them outside I thought I'd give it a go. I gave Herons a call first to see if the seed would still be fresh enough - He said there would possibly be a little less viable seed but plenty would still grow and the next 2-3 months of cold and fluctuating temperatures should be long enough for them to break out of their dormancy naturally.

Beni Shidare, Ao Shidare, small leaf palmatum and Nomura. I think maybe they sell less at this time of year because the website said approx 50 seeds but there was easily 200+ of the small leaf and 100+ of the others! Planted them in seed trays in a mixture of bonsai soil and leaf mould I collected from the woods. I lay them out on some gravel and put a sheet of clear perspex over the top weighed down with bricks. I'm hoping trying it allowing nature to take it's course naturally might yield better results this time!

 

[eryk2kartman]

Nice one,

Would you not cover them with something? I did mine the same way but put a thin layer of vermiculite on top to keep them moist all the time.

There is plenty of time, they will grow.
Some of mine that i planted in November last year are already germinating, and i only got cold this week.

 

[Cattwooduk]

Nice one,

Would you not cover them with something? I did mine the same way but put a thin layer of vermiculite on top to keep them moist all the time.

There is plenty of time, they will grow.
Some of mine that i planted in November last year are already germinating, and i only got cold this week.

Yes I put a 1/4 inch layer of the same mix of soil on top! I just took the pictures first to show the number and density of seeds, I can look back at it laterto get an idea of how many failed to germinate or may do later on.

Having the clear sheet of plastic covering them should keep moisture in as well - about an hour after covering them there was condensation on the inside so it should exaggerate the temperature changes nicely.

 

[BonsaiNaga13]

I bought some maple seeds from Herons Bonsai. I know ideal time to plant them 'naturally' without stratification in the fridge would have been heading into autumn but I wasn't going to bother this year. I'd tried a couple of times stratifying in the fridge and had no luck. However after watching Peter's YouTube video on growing them outside I thought I'd give it a go. I gave Herons a call first to see if the seed would still be fresh enough - He said there would possibly be a little less viable seed but plenty would still grow and the next 2-3 months of cold and fluctuating temperatures should be long enough for them to break out of their dormancy naturally.

Beni Shidare, Ao Shidare, small leaf palmatum and Nomura. I think maybe they sell less at this time of year because the website said approx 50 seeds but there was easily 200+ of the small leaf and 100+ of the others! Planted them in seed trays in a mixture of bonsai soil and leaf mould I collected from the woods. I lay them out on some gravel and put a sheet of clear perspex over the top weighed down with bricks. I'm hoping trying it allowing nature to take it's course naturally might yield better results this time!

View attachment 225434View attachment 225435View attachment 225436View attachment 225437View attachment 225438

Got my idea from heron's also but I used my own seeds, brought them in about 2 weeks ago and already have about 13 growing. I also have a bath still sitting out with plexy glass on them

 

[Cattwooduk]

I think I will leave my trays outside, as soon as I see growth pushing up into the clear cover I will remove it and move the trays into an unheated greenhouse. Should be enough to keep the frost and wildlife off them and allow them to take off. I've got a friend with an acre field that he half uses for horses - convinced him to let me dig over an area later in the year so I can transplant all my plants into a bed and field grow them for a few years.

 

[BonsaiNaga13]

I stuck some of mine in with the tail (little wing thing) sticking up, and some I just lightly covered and watered in. The ones with the tail sticking up are the ones that already sprouted. I'll post a pic once the first true set of leaves emerge on all of em

 

[Timbo]

Anyone having trouble with treeseeds.com lately? I ordered some seeds a month ago and haven't received them.

They were marked shipped a few days after I ordered them...when I contacted them, someone said they were just getting back from the hospital and many shipments had been marked "shipped" by mistake. They assured me I would receive them soon. However, that was at least 2 weeks ago and I still haven't seen them.

Further emails have elicited no response. I normally have had really good experiences with them and would be disappointed to lose them as a source.

Any luck with that? They don't seem the best at replying. However, I've never had them take that long. Odd excuse IMO.
Some things just don't sprout from them, I gave up on Maple seeds. Most of these seed companies don't tell you how old the seed batches are.
If you payed by Paypal, you might stop payment. Not sure how long you can do that though.

 

[Farwest]

Any luck with that? They don't seem the best at replying. However, I've never had them take that long. Odd excuse IMO.
Some things just don't sprout from them, I gave up on Maple seeds. Most of these seed companies don't tell you how old the seed batches are.
If you payed by Paypal, you might stop payment. Not sure how long you can do that though.

I placed an order with treeseeds.com on Dec. 26th and it finally showed up Feb. 1st, only after submitting a paypal dispute a couple weeks ago after absolutely no communication. I won’t be buying from treeseeds.com again.

Contrast that with FW Schumacher. I ordered some last weekend and they arrived Thursday.

 

[Ryceman3]

I’ll be seeking to propagate a few Melaleuca varieties in the near future. I’ve personally collected and bartered seed of a few different kinds that I think have potential. Not sure how familiar those outside of Australia are with Mels, but I see a lot of potential in them as bonsai. Great bark on many of them and leaf size on many has potential too. I have had great success with a couple of species getting them to conform to bonsai (and I’m not the only one! ?) Look local - always an opportunity! Plus... seed for these out here is much easier to come by than JBP!?

 

[Starfox]

My only 2 seedlings for the moment have come up in some reclaimed seed mix that I used for some cuttings. One I'm almost certain is Corymbia citriodora and the other is a Eucalyptus of some description but will have to wait that one out.

 

[Acer palNATEum]

I placed an order with treeseeds.com on Dec. 26th and it finally showed up Feb. 1st, only after submitting a paypal dispute a couple weeks ago after absolutely no communication. I won’t be buying from treeseeds.com again.

Contrast that with FW Schumacher. I ordered some last weekend and they arrived Thursday.

Glad I am not the only one they are blowing off then. I still haven't received my seeds.

I just keep emailing and emailing to no avail...but I would be a day or two behind your Dec. 26th order date so maybe they are doing them in order.

I also received mine from Schumacher very quickly, as in a month ago when I ordered them a few days after the ones from tree seeds.

 

[BonsaiNaga13]

Glad I am not the only one they are blowing off then. I still haven't received my seeds.

I just keep emailing and emailing to no avail...but I would be a day or two behind your Dec. 26th order date so maybe they are doing them in order.

I also received mine from Schumacher very quickly, as in a month ago when I ordered them a few days after the ones from tree seeds.

Another St. Louisian. I haven't ordered from them since last September and I got all my seeds in about a week or two but hearing so many negative rescent experiences IDK if I'ma buy from them again

 

[Timbo]

I placed an order with treeseeds.com on Dec. 26th and it finally showed up Feb. 1st, only after submitting a paypal dispute a couple weeks ago after absolutely no communication. I won’t be buying from treeseeds.com again.

Contrast that with FW Schumacher. I ordered some last weekend and they arrived Thursday.

They have been pretty good, only negative I have with Schumacher is the high shipping rate.

I bought some seed from treeseedsplus on Ebay a few months ago and they came in normal time...I dunno what's up with that.

 

[eryk2kartman]

I could not resist today and placed the order:
Order Summary:

Austrian Pine (pinus nigra)
Stone Pine, Umbrella Pine (pinus pinea)
Japanese Black Pine (pinus thunbergii)
Atlas Cedar (cedrus atlantica)
Liquidambar (liquidambar styraciflua)
Chinese Sweet Gum (liquidambar formosa)
Black Tupelo (nyssa sylvatica)
Chinese Golden Larch (pseudolarix amabilis)
Chinese Red Pine (pinus tabuliformis)
Cedar of Lebanon (cedrus libani)
Mountain Hemlock, (tsuga mertensiana)