Water is the key ingredient to start the chemistry needed for germination within the seeds. Seeds are either waiting for water to start germinating or they are slowly developing. When enough water becomes available they start growing.

You can soak seeds too long and for most seeds 4 to 8 hours is plenty. Soaking 2 days or more can deprive seeds of oxygen needed to get the sprouting underway and they will rot or putrefy. Usually you can tell if you have soaked the seed enough to start the metabolic reactions when it has swollen. Sometimes just the embryo in the seed swells (palms) but for most the whole seed swells.

For every rule there are exceptions. Some of the seeds we sell should not be soaked, like Eucalyptus or most of the seeds in the Myrtaceae family (Callistemon , Melaleuca, etc.) These small seeds soak up plenty of water when you water them in the flats. Also be aware the Toyon (Heteromeles) will turn into a gooey ball if you attempt to soak them before planting. Cactus seeds and many of the other xeriphytic plants do not need to be soaked either.

If you are going to drench a seed to disinfect the surface, it is best to do so at the end of soaking. For mechanically sown seed as well as hand sowing, it usually is necessary to air dry the seeds enough so they do not stick together. Adding sand to the almost dry seeds can help disperse them on the seedbed. The easiest way to redry is to place on a screen and dry until the seed no longer clumps together.

I will cover other germination techniques on seeds in upcoming newsletters. There are usually many different opinions about what works best for germinating seeds. Any seeds that you want to hear about or which you have special knowledge, please let us know and I will make sure I cover them in upcoming months.

SEEDCO is busy harvesting the winter seed crops. We have started on the Fatsia japonica crop. We are now almost to the end of our Asparagus meyeri crop. The Asp. retrofractus is starting early and we expect good quantities, but due to heavy demand please order early. We are expecting our crop of Araucaria seed in late February and Early March. The Clivia miniata (orange-pastels) and Clivia aurea (yellow) are getting under way, and although we have a good crop, we run out every year so, let us know your needs soon. We are still waiting on pins and needles to get confirmation that the Cycas revoluta seed is on its way. We will keep you informed.

We have good quantities of Dietes (Moraea) bicolor and vegeta (iridioides) on hand. The Schefflera (Aralia) elegantissima and Schefflera "Pittman’s Pride" are both coming in now and we have fresh for immediate delivery. Looking forward to hearing from you about germinating seeds.