Prunus Mume, Japanese Apricot from Seed

[RobertB]

Planning a little early here, but I am extremely interested and really want to try and grow some Prunus Mume from seed next spring (spring 2019). From the fairly limited information I've read about growing them from seed, I have heard that I'm looking at some time before I get any flowers, even possibly up to 100 yrs plus. I also have read that buying legit seeds can be a bit challenging. I was planning to purchase from Sheffields.

It seems reasonable to grow stock from seed as I read they grow rather quickly. Even if I have to graft on branches later that have the flowers I want, this seems like something I would like to give a go at.

I am definitely not sure how they would handle our summers in the deep south. I do have one, but am waiting to pickup from my Mother who purchased it for me and is keeping it until I get it from her later this summer.

My plan would be to germinate them then move the a portion of the more vigorous seedlings to the ground in yr 2-3. I am not really worried if they average 5-10 yrs before flowering. Its going to take at least this long till I was worried about developing branches anyways and that's only for ground grown plants.

I do understand they don't backbud very well or are at least difficult at times to obtain back buds. Seems like grafting is something that you must master to grow and be successful with these.

Was wanting to see if some that have grown from seed could share their experiences and recommendations.

 

[Brent]

Robert

Growing mume from seed is relatively easy. The BEST way is to collect or acquire fresh fruit. Maybe someone on the list here can help with that. The reason is that you will have the highest germination rate from fresh fruit, and most often the seedlings resemble the parent (but not always). That is, you will probably get pink flowers from 'Peggy Clarke' fruit that may or may not be double, but the odds of pink flowers are very high. I have had seedling flower in as little as three years (grown in the ground), but five to ten years is more typical.

To process the fresh fruit, just dump the fruit in a five gallon plastic bucket, cover the fruit with water, sit it out in the sun, and let them ferment. You should keep them wet. After about two weeks, the pulp will be easy to remove by simple washing with water. Drain the water from the clean seed, but don't let them dry. As soon as the water stops dripping from the bucket but the seeds are still thoroughly wet, mix the seed with an equal volume of DRY VERMICULITE. I prefer this over peat moss, which can mold. Put the mixture in a ziplock bag and tumble it make sure it is completely mixed. You will not have to add water throughout the pre treatment if you do it like this. Put the bag in the refrigerator (not freezer) and keep it there until the seed starts to sprout in the spring, or temperatures are high enough to safely plant them outside (if they haven't sprouted yet). The cold pre treatment should be at least 90 days (3 months), more doesn't hurt. They can be stored until they begin to sprout. After that you have to plant pretty quickly. If you do like this, the 70F second pre treatment will not be necessary and they should start growing right away. BTW, this process works for all kinds of seeds. I treat all my FRESH seed this way. Wonderful for all kinds of maples.

If you buy dry seeds from a company, Sheffield's is good, so is Schmacher, you may encounter problems. Seed companies have to dry seed so they can store it. The problem is that this often induces a secondary germination inhibitor that must be overcome. After the initial 3 month cold pre treatment, there may be necessary a 3 month warm (70F) pre treatment before they will germinate. The need for further pre treatment varies with the species. Some will require multiple pretreatments. I have had seeds that require 2 cold and 2 warm pre treatments before the seed germinated.

The other problem with buying species seed from a company is that it is not likely to have come from a cultivar (they will reveal it if it has). This means that you will get species characteristics, and for mume this means single white flowers. Of course, if you are going to use them for understock, this doesn't matter. But if you are expecting tons of fragrent large flowers, you are going to be disappointed.

See the article SEED at our website for more information on growing from seed.

Brent
EvergreenGardenworks.com

 

[RobertB]

Brent, wow. thank you for the response. I wanted to buy some from you this yr but everything is sold. probably next year though!

 

[Paulpash]

Robert

Growing mume from seed is relatively easy. The BEST way is to collect or acquire fresh fruit. Maybe someone on the list here can help with that. The reason is that you will have the highest germination rate from fresh fruit, and most often the seedlings resemble the parent (but not always). That is, you will probably get pink flowers from 'Peggy Clarke' fruit that may or may not be double, but the odds of pink flowers are very high. I have had seedling flower in as little as three years (grown in the ground), but five to ten years is more typical.

To process the fresh fruit, just dump the fruit in a five gallon plastic bucket, cover the fruit with water, sit it out in the sun, and let them ferment. You should keep them wet. After about two weeks, the pulp will be easy to remove by simple washing with water. Drain the water from the clean seed, but don't let them dry. As soon as the water stops dripping from the bucket but the seeds are still thoroughly wet, mix the seed with an equal volume of DRY VERMICULITE. I prefer this over peat moss, which can mold. Put the mixture in a ziplock bag and tumble it make sure it is completely mixed. You will not have to add water throughout the pre treatment if you do it like this. Put the bag in the refrigerator (not freezer) and keep it there until the seed starts to sprout in the spring, or temperatures are high enough to safely plant them outside (if they haven't sprouted yet). The cold pre treatment should be at least 90 days (3 months), more doesn't hurt. They can be stored until they begin to sprout. After that you have to plant pretty quickly. If you do like this, the 70F second pre treatment will not be necessary and they should start growing right away. BTW, this process works for all kinds of seeds. I treat all my FRESH seed this way. Wonderful for all kinds of maples.

If you buy dry seeds from a company, Sheffield's is good, so is Schmacher, you may encounter problems. Seed companies have to dry seed so they can store it. The problem is that this often induces a secondary germination inhibitor that must be overcome. After the initial 3 month cold pre treatment, there may be necessary a 3 month warm (70F) pre treatment before they will germinate. The need for further pre treatment varies with the species. Some will require multiple pretreatments. I have had seeds that require 2 cold and 2 warm pre treatments before the seed germinated.

The other problem with buying species seed from a company is that it is not likely to have come from a cultivar (they will reveal it if it has). This means that you will get species characteristics, and for mume this means single white flowers. Of course, if you are going to use them for understock, this doesn't matter. But if you are expecting tons of fragrent large flowers, you are going to be disappointed.

See the article SEED at our website for more information on growing from seed.

Brent
EvergreenGardenworks.com

I wish you had the time to post more on here! Thank you so much for your articles - a treasure trove of info for people that grow their own.

 

[my nellie]

I wish you had the time to post more on here! Thank you so much for your articles - a treasure trove of info for people that grow their own.

May I repeat this!
Τhis is an excellent opportunity for me to communicate directly and express my sincere thanks!

 

[Dan92119]

I know this is old but I have s question…I am in Washington DC right now and they mark a lot of trees with the species and cultivar. I have seeds from a ‘Peggy Clarke’.
Do I just plant them now, since it’s likely they have gone through their “cold treatment” naturally?