Various pine seeds stratification period

[Dermot]

Hi all.

I picked up some pine seeds last autumn. Pinus densiflora, pinus thunbergii and pinus nigra. The nigra I collected locally and the other two I purchased online. I stored them all in the fridge from Oct/ Nov time and at the end of January I took them out, brought them up to room temperature, put them in warm water for 24 hrs, then popped them into bags of damp substrate and put them back in the fridge.

Can anyone advise on the ideal time that each of the 3 species'should spend stratifying at this stage before planting on?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Dav4]

I stratified jbp and jrp seeds for 1 week with good results. No idea on P. nigra

 

[penumbra]

On JBP & JRP go with 30 days. You have nothing to lose and you Will get a higher percentage of seeds to germinate. I am stratifying JRP at this time, just started.

 

[Shibui]

I've stratified JBP seed for 0 days and still had good germination.
Usually I sow outdoors and let the big fridge do the work naturally. They start to appear as days get warmer in spring but just to test the my theory that JBP seed does not really need stratification. I sowed a batch well after the last frost and they still germinated as well as any that have been in the fridge.

So now you have a full range of stratification times from 0-30 days all claiming good results. Take your pick.

 

[papkey5]

I have pinus densiflora and the bag says no pretreatment is needed. I was going to put mine in a seedling tray around late April.
I have no idea for the others. Where do you buy your seeds from?

 

[Dermot]

I have pinus densiflora and the bag says no pretreatment is needed. I was going to put mine in a seedling tray around late April.
I have no idea for the others. Where do you buy your seeds from?

I purchased them on eBay from a seller in Italy

 

[penumbra]

According to Dirr, any of these seeds fresh require no pretreatment, however if they have been stored, they may require a couple months of cold stratification.
Once again, It Depends.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

I have germinated nigra in summer. With no stratification.
JRP and JBP too.

 

[penumbra]

I have germinated nigra in summer. With no stratification.
JRP and JBP too.

You had a good seed source.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

You had a good seed source.

Chinese ebay sellers and hand picked nigra seeds. I think they could've been a lot better!

 

[penumbra]

Chinese ebay sellers and hand picked nigra seeds. I think they could've been a lot better!

If they germinated well for you, they really could not have been a lot better regardless the source.

 

[Wulfskaar]

I sowed JBP, Black Spruce, and Bristlecone pine from one of those cheap kits with no stratification. They germinated quite well for me. I did scrape the seed casings a little bit before soaking for 24 hrs though, so maybe that helped.