Question about seed stratification in a fridge: do you need to?

[Alcam]

Hi everyone,

This past weekend, I picked up a handful of walnut seeds from my late grandparent's yard from the tree they planted decades ago, and I'm looking to grow them over the next however many decades into bonsai. I've been doing my research into how to do so, and all I see online is to soak them, wrap them, and put them in the fridge for a length of time. But I would like to know why it wouldn't be better to just plant them in soil straight away and wait to see if they grow in the spring?

Would planting these walnuts in soil be just as good, if not better, as the fridge method? I mean, isn't in soil over winter merely a natural cold stratification method that doesn't require any shock of planting in the spring, as they'll already be planted and undisturbed?

I live in Victoria, BC.

Thanks in advance for any insight!

 

[penumbra]

Yes, plant them outside and just protect them from pesky critters.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

The only reason you need to cold stratify seeds artificially is if you bring them in from another location and can't provide the chill hours naturally. Otherwise, just put them in the back yard and let nature take its course. The primary thing you want to look for is making sure your soil stays moist and not soaking wet.

 

[Alcam]

Yes, plant them outside and just protect them from pesky critters.

The only reason you need to cold stratify seeds artificially is if you bring them in from another location and can't provide the chill hours naturally. Otherwise, just put them in the back yard and let nature take its course. The primary thing you want to look for is making sure your soil stays moist and not soaking wet.

Thanks, peeps! I had a feeling this was the case, so I appreciate the confirmation. I recall watching a video about growing an avocado from seed in soil and not with the water method, and it grows much better, of course.

 

[BeepBeepBonsaiSheep]

The only reason you need to cold stratify seeds artificially is if you bring them in from another location and can't provide the chill hours naturally. Otherwise, just put them in the back yard and let nature take its course. The primary thing you want to look for is making sure your soil stays moist and not soaking wet.

Is there a minimum high temp that can’t be gone over to cold stratify outdoors?

I have some maple seeds and would like to just pot them and leave them out, but not sure if our days will be cold enough to qualify as proper cold stratification

 

[Tums]

Is there a minimum high temp that can’t be gone over to cold stratify outdoors?

I have some maple seeds and would like to just pot them and leave them out, but not sure if our days will be cold enough to qualify as proper cold stratification

The instructions I've read from books and sites say at most 40 degrees.

 

[Potawatomi13]

Is there a minimum high temp that can’t be gone over to cold stratify outdoors?

I have some maple seeds and would like to just pot them and leave them out, but not sure if our days will be cold enough to qualify as proper cold stratification

Not a problem in this area. Just plant em out and watch em grow.

 

[Shibui]

Japanese maple and Trident maple do not seem to need any stratification if the seed is fresh. I can pick seed in autumn and store indoors through winter then sow outside after frost has finished and still get good germination. Older maple seed can be more difficult to germinate so stratification may help then.
I doubt that walnut would need stratification either but it will not hurt either.

Natural stratification outdoors seems to work better for me. I do not have to battle moulds, etc that seem to thrive in plastic bag in the fridge. Natural stratification is exactly what nature intended for cool climate seeds so definitely sow and leave the trays outside but take note of the pesky critters warning. Cover your trays to prevent rats, mice, birds, squirrels, etc, etc from stealing the seeds. They have all evolved strategies to find hidden seeds through winter to survive and in winter they are hungry. Not sure how they know where seeds are but when something finds them it will dig up and eat every seed in the tray unless you take adequate precautions.

 

[BeepBeepBonsaiSheep]

Japanese maple and Trident maple do not seem to need any stratification if the seed is fresh. I can pick seed in autumn and store indoors through winter then sow outside after frost has finished and still get good germination. Older maple seed can be more difficult to germinate so stratification may help then.
I doubt that walnut would need stratification either but it will not hurt either.

Natural stratification outdoors seems to work better for me. I do not have to battle moulds, etc that seem to thrive in plastic bag in the fridge. Natural stratification is exactly what nature intended for cool climate seeds so definitely sow and leave the trays outside but take note of the pesky critters warning. Cover your trays to prevent rats, mice, birds, squirrels, etc, etc from stealing the seeds. They have all evolved strategies to find hidden seeds through winter to survive and in winter they are hungry. Not sure how they know where seeds are but when something finds them it will dig up and eat every seed in the tray unless you take adequate precautions.

They were picked end of September and mailed to me. I’ve just left them sitting in a baggie with all my other seed baggies

I’ll try letting them do their thing naturally and will find a way to keep critters out of it

 

[Alcam]

Update: so far three out of five walnut seeds are starting to sprout. I'm pumped!

 

[19Mateo83]

Update: so far three out of five walnut seeds are starting to sprout. I'm pumped!

Congrats on successful stratification and germination.

 

[Alcam]

Congrats on successful stratification and germination.

Thanks! Put in soil, cover seed, voila. Nature does its thing.

 

[19Mateo83]

Thanks! Put in soil, cover seed, voila. Nature does its thing.

Yep, nature knows best. I have found myself stratifying in the fridge just so I don’t have to protect hundreds of acorns and other nuts from the squirrels.

 

[Alcam]

Yep, nature knows best. I have found myself stratifying in the fridge just so I don’t have to protect hundreds of acorns and other nuts from the squirrels.

Thats fair. I'm in a condo, so that thankfully hasn't been a problem.

 

[Frozentreehugger]

Most nut seeds . Walnut oak whatever are still . Susceptible to be eaten . Especially squirrels . Even after sprouting . Essentially as long as the nut survives in the soil . Learnt this the hard way with oak . I used a cage out of chicken wire . Ugly but effective . Once the nut is gone and or . Spring is gone and there is more for them to eat it’s safe

 

[19Mateo83]

Most nut seeds . Walnut oak whatever are still . Susceptible to be eaten . Especially squirrels . Even after sprouting . Essentially as long as the nut survives in the soil . Learnt this the hard way with oak . I used a cage out of chicken wire . Ugly but effective . Once the nut is gone and or . Spring is gone and there is more for them to eat it’s safe

I lost my crop of pecan trees to this last year. Damn squirrels dug them up and bit them off just below where the nut was. Chicken wire is a must!

 

[Frozentreehugger]

Pardon my northerner ignorance. But does pecan bake good bonsai . No idea what one even looks like . The tree not the nut

 

[19Mateo83]

Pardon my northerner ignorance. But does pecan bake good bonsai . No idea what one even looks like . The tree not the nut

I don’t know about a pecan bonsai. I grow them to sell on Etsy. this year I’m doing dunstan chestnuts, pecans, hazel nuts and English walnuts. Pecans have compound leaves and grow similar to black walnuts.
https://www.sunnylandfarms.com/Page/pecan-trees