Acer Palmatum Germination...

[sirstiv]

Hello all.

Last november i decided to plant 5 seeds for germinating via the whole 120 days cold stratification process.

Months passed... many days of checking... 1 seed rotting... and I gave up (sort of).

I'm in thoughts of starting again. This time doing all 20 left over seeds at once.

As I decided to call it semi quits... at around day 150... the seeds that were in the fridge had peelable seed shells.

I set them free replanted the seeds, in different environments. (3 in warm and 2 in cold).

Will these end up growing? They looked in fine condition...

I also decided to finely open up a whole new acer seed using a nail clipper and fine scalpel (to cheat... apparently works on other plants).

Can a seed from a japanese maple germinate if you free it from its shell?

Feedback would be appreciated . See picture for inner seed condition. (Last one was rotten).

It's been a week so far since the re-plant from shells process.

-Steve

[KIRKY]

Hi Sirstiv, I have never cold stratified Maple seeds. Or peeled the outer layer so I can not help you with that. I do know they can rot, so not sure how they will cope with the outer shell removed. Don't keep them too wet. I have planted them in seed raising mix just under the surface and most if not all germinated. I also have them self seeding on top of Orchid mix in the back yard, between orchids so it would appear they are not difficult to raise. I would sugggest the next lot you get you should just plant normally outside and see what happens.
Cheers
Kirky

[Stu]

Hi Sirstiv,
Fresh seed helps. Where did you obtain the seed and how old is it? This said apparently seed can take more than one winter period to germinate.
I usually get seed from the tree, put it in a plastic take away food container mixed in moist (not wet) sphagnum moss. Sometimes I spray with anti-fungal. I leave it in the fridge and pick out seedlings as they show signs of germinating. Be patient. Usually I get a good number of seedlings. I know someone who picks up seedlings from the ground around her tree. No fuss.

[sirstiv]

I got them off ebay.

Got some firethorn seeds and maple seeds.

1/5 Firethorns sprouted. Currently growing very well under R/B/W LED lights.

Either way I still have a whole bag of them, won't hurt to try again... and winter is coming anyway. (i'll plant some in outside in plastic containers)

Might do 10 in the fridge and 10 outside.

It's a shame that I'll need to wait another 100+ days though lol. I guess the beauty and satisfaction will be worth it.

-Edit: I have 29 seeds left. I'm sure i'll get 1

[shibui]

One problem with maple seed is that it can go into deep dormancy if stored. They are still alive and look good when opened but just won't grow. Fresh seed is easy to germinate. I don't know why people buy maple seed via ebay whn you cannot tell how old the seed is.

Try freezing some of the maple seed to try to break dormancy - allow seed to soak for a day or 2 then drain and place seed into a plastic bag. Freeze for 3-4 weeks then remove and sow as normal. They still won't germinate till weather warms up in spring.
Acid treatment (gibberellic acid?) is used to break seed dormancy in commercial operations but probably not viable for home/ small batches.

If you want fresh Japanese maple seed that will germinate well I can help.

[sirstiv]

The seeds are supposedly from last season.

It was sort of my fault for planting 5 only. Relatively high failure rate.

I thought you're not meant to place them in complete freeze? Just leave em in the fridge?

Should these seeds experience minus temps?

I'll give it a try, if nothing comes through i'll let you know .

[shibui]

There will be plenty of places where maple seed gets frozen naturally over winter. All sorts of seed is stored frozen for longer life storage and seed can be stored for many years when frozen. There are several cryogenic stores of germplasm (frozen seed) in case of accidental loss of plant species. Nordic Gene bank at Svalbard https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svalbard_ ... Seed_Vault is probably best known but there are now others (http://cropgenebank.sgrp.cgiar.org/inde ... inmenu-201).

I often freeze seed to kill bugs that would eat it while stored at room temp. Freezing for a week or 2 kills the bugs but does not damage the seed.

I have seen reference to subzero stratification as an aid to breaking dormancy so it may help in this case.

[brodoyouevenbonsai]

I got the maple seeds from ebay too. I was sceptical but gave it a go. I put them straight into a cup of hot water and waited till they sunk (about 24hrs) then wrapped in paper towel and into sandwich bag with a small spray of water. About 60% sprouted while in the fridge. Prob better ways to do it though but it worked for me

Sent from my SM-N920I using Tapatalk

[dansai]

As Shibui says, fresh seed is the way to go.I got some 18 months ago from Shibui, stratified half and directly sowed half. Had a slightly better germination rate for those directly sown, close to 100%, and better survival rate in the months that followed.

Just get fresh seed from someone you know when its available. You'll probably get more seed for you money and heaps better results

[itsfullofstars]

Japanese maple seed needs cold to break down the germination inhibitor. When the seed has had enough cold (about 90 days) the inhibitor chemical should be broken down and it will start pushing out some roots. Sydney is not cold enough to do this, so just put them in the fridge.

I do not think taking off the shell will speed up or help this process. It will most likely increase the chance to rot without protection.

If you want some fresh seed I can tell you some location of trees you can collect right now. Japanese maple seed is ripe now and if you know where to look you can get hundreds of fresh ripe seed. Put them in a bag of perlite and peat moss in the fridge mid may to mid june. They should be sprouting when there is enough warmth to grow at a decent rate.

[sirstiv]

Should I be concerned by subtle mold growing around the seeds in the fridge?

[Luke308]

viewtopic.php?f=9&t=11622&hilit=+seeds

Fresh seeds are best - but have a read of my experimentation from a few years back

[shibui]

There's lots of good moulds and there's plenty of bad moulds. What's growing in your bag could be either. I'd probably err on the side of caution and try to get rid of it rather than relying on hope and prayers.
I have seen this happen so many times it is why I prefer not to stratify in the fridge. As I have said before fresh seed will grow without stratification. Use fresh seed and forget about all the problems.

[sirstiv]

It's a race against time.

Some seeds are sitting outside in pots and some are sitting in the fridge.

1 more month till i find out. 60/90 days.

[kcpoole]

The ones in the fridge I woud pot up now to avoid the mould becoming a problem

Ken