Growing Annuals and Biennials - A Reminder

If your seeds are for the garden, this year, then likely they are either annuals, are treated as annuals or are short duration perennials (or even biennials).

Nearly every single species will respond to the the 'sow and grow' method.  Sow the seed, barely covering it, where it is to flower or in small pots, water it and let nature take its course.  Some will need warmer weather, some will need time to take up water and then germinate, but all will respond, in time, to the 'Sow and Grow' method.

Anything not falling into this category will have its own page somewhere in the blog.

How To Use This Blog

Tagging and Searching

This blog should be correctly tagged with the latin names of all of the species we sell online, HOWEVER, should a search not return a post or even several posts, then you will require the generic instructions which can be found here:

 Instruction Basics

Note that the instructions specify times for the seeds to germinate.  These times are the minimum provided all of the cultural conditions have been met.  If seeds are too wet, too cold, too dry, too hot, sown too deep, not prepared (should the instructions call for that) then success is not guaranteed.  Seeds are living things, they require a set of conditions in order to perform as expected, some are forgiving, some, unfortunately, are not.  Work with nature, not against it, be mindful of the time of year, especially with short duration plants.  If now is not the right time, wait, we only sell orthodox seeds which gives them a shelf life that at the very least extends into the next season, so you may be best off waiting.  If you cannot provide extra light, do not sow seeds in the Autumn/Early Winter.  Extra light means growlights.  If this is not possible then do not sow until the days are getting longer, so after the winter solstice.

Growing On

We dont always include growing on instructions, but there are several rules of thumb with this.  When you feel you can handle a plant, then you can pot it on from the seed container into a small pot to start with.  Once the roots fill that pot, again move it on, one or two sizes up.
There is a wealth of information out there on growing plants and seedlings to maturity, far more than this blog could ever contain. 

Recycling

In line with the trend towards maximum recycling, we have for years used packaging that is fully recyclable.  The Mailers, the invoices, the seed bags themselves can all be recycled.

The paper we use comes from companies that use recycled content and no bleaches when producing it (so no bright white paper).  The mailers can be fully recycled, many have diagrams on them as to how to do this.

Recap of Sowing Guides

Due to the run we have had on the online shop lately, I thought it would be prudent to give a recap of where the instruction sheets can be found.

For Sweet Peas, follow the pea seed instuctions to be found here  We recommend either a hot water soak or nicking the individual seeds (time consuming) and then soaking in tepid water.  Either/or not both.  Soak until the seeds swell to around twice the size before sowing.

For Nasturtiums, they may be sown directly where you want them to flower (2 seeds together, remove the weaker seedling) or so individual in cells or small pots and grow on before planting out.  For direct sowing wait till April (after Easter for this year), otherwise start now.  We have found soaking the seed speeds germination, but it is not necessary.

Marigolds - sow thinly just below the surface, they need a bit of warmth to germinate and should come up in around 2 weeks.  Once they are up and they are big enough to handle, you can thin them out, repotting those you thin so as not to waste plants.  The should be grown on warm and bright, remember these are from Mexico originally, so they love warmth.

Snapdragons - thinly sow just barely covering, they need to be around 15 Centigrade to germinate and should come up quite quickly.  They will grow quite quickly and should be thinned out to avoid weak seedlings.

Stocks (both Night Scented and Virginia) - thinly sow where you want them to flower, do not thin, they grow best in clumps and drifts.

Alyssum (Lobularia) - thinly sow barely covering as they need light to germinate, they may be sown in trays and pots now or later where they are to flower.

Cosmos - sow thinly barely covering,  they should be sown where they are to flower or in pots to be planted out later, do not thin, they use one another for mutual support, spaced too widely they will flop over.

Petunias, sow thinly on the surface of seed compost.  When large enough to handle, prick out into trays or pots, spacing them out to give them growing room.

Temperature - most of the above will germinate as long as the temperature is over 16 Deg C.  All will do better, slightly warmer.

Humidity - seeds dont like drying out once they have been wet to the point of triggering the germination processes.  Best way to ensure this is to cover the trays - as most like light to germinate, plastic is best for this purpose (we use freezer bags on our pots - saving them afterwards for next year)

Germination Updates

This update covers the use of a Salt Petre (Potassium nitrate - KNO3) in respect of seeds that are stubborn to germinate or germinate in an uneven fashion.

The tests were conducted on open pollinated chilli seeds, specifically the superhot variety Capsicum chinese 'Bhut Jolokia' aka the Ghost or Naga chilli.

Notoriously tricky to get even germination, if any on this type, I tried one batch of 30 or so seeds in late January in ideal conditions but with no real pre-treatment.  It was sown along other types including Padrons, Cayennes, Scorpions and Reapers - the last two also being noted as possibly tricky.

After 7 days, all pots had at least one seedling, by 14 days the other types had 10 - 30 seedlings with an average germination rate of 90%, except the lonely Bhut Jolokia seedling.  Finally by day 28, it was joined by one more seedling for a total of 2 from 30.

At this point, I decided to get the rest of the batch going, but I soaked the seeds for 12 hours in a solution of salt petre (5g per litre) from the batch we sell online in 5g packs.  They were then sown in identical conditions for germination and the picture below was taken just 24 hours later.

For reference, the seeds were planted in 6 columns of 5 seeds, for a total of 30 seeds.  The image shows many coming through and movement of soil in all columns in all seed positions.  3 days later all the seed leaves had opened and there were 30 healthy seedlings.

The bottom line is this stuff really works, so I then tried it on all the remaining chilli seeds that I wanted to sow this year with the same stunning results.

2020 Germination Test Results - Round 1

First test results are in for the year and so far all looks good.

Acacia (43 Species)

Results

All this years seeds, minimum 90%, maximum 100%, average across all batches is 97%

Context

Batch Sizes - 10 seeds
Earliest 1st germination 5 days
Latest 1st germination 14 days
Bottom heat 10C lift
Daytime Air - 19.5 C
Nighttime Air - 16.5 C
Bright Filtered Natural Daylight

Agaves (31 Species)

Results

All this years seeds, minimum 90%, maximum 100%, average across all batches is 95%

Context

Batch Sizes - 25 seeds
Earliest 1st germination 3 days
Latest 1st germination 21 days
Bottom heat 10C lift
Daytime Air - 25 C
Nighttime Air - 20 C
Lighting, shaded full sun equivalent

Cacti (71 Species or Mixes)

Results

All this years seeds, minimum 85%, maximum 100%, average across all batches is 95%

Context

Batch Size - 30 seeds
Earliest 1st germination 3 days  (Astrophytum as expected)
Latest 1st germination 21 days (Wittia & Epiphyllum as expected)
Bottom heat 10C lift
Daytime Air - 25 C
Nighttime Air - 20 C
Lighting, shaded full sun equivalent

Aloes (16 Species)

Results

All this years seeds, minimum 85%, maximum 100%, average across all batches is 97%

Context

Batch Sizes - 20 seeds
Earliest 1st germination 5 days
Latest 1st germination 12 days (Except polyphylla)
Bottom heat 10C lift
Daytime Air - 25 C
Nighttime Air - 20 C
Lighting, shaded full sun equivalent

Pachypodiums (6 Species)

Results

All this years seeds, minimum 85%, maximum 100%, average across all batches is 90%

Context

Batch Size - 20 seeds
Earliest 1st germination 7 days
Latest 1st germination 21 days
Bottom heat 10C lift
Daytime Air - 25 C
Nighttime Air - 20 C
Lighting, shaded full sun equivalent

Rudbeckia (4 Species)

Results

All this years seeds, minimum 74%, maximum 92%, average across all batches is 89%

Context

Batch Sizes - 100 seeds
Earliest 1st germination 5 days
Latest 1st germination 14 days
Bottom heat 10C lift
Daytime Air - 19.5 C
Nighttime Air - 16.5 C
Bright Filtered Natural Daylight

Stapelias (2 Species)

Results

All this years seeds, minimum 95%, maximum 100%,

Context

Batch Sizes - 20 seeds
Earliest 1st germination 1 days
Latest 1st germination 2 days
Bottom heat 10C lift
Daytime Air - 25 C
Nighttime Air - 20 C
Lighting, shaded full sun equivalent

Growing Capers From Seed

Pre treatment

Caper seeds need to be soaked in luke warm water for 48 hours before anything else, then they need to be stratified at 4 Deg C for at least 4 weeks.  See the post on stratification here

Sowing

Sow the seeds in a good quality seed mix in pots covering the seed with about 4mm of the mix.  Water well and then seal in a plastic bag and place somewhere warm and bright until they germinate.  At 20 C they will germinate in 6 - 8 weeks, at 25 C it may take a couple of weeks less.

Growing on

Once they are large enough to handle, pot them singly in 7cm pots at first, stepping up in size as the plant grows.

Growing Pine (Pinus) and Spruce (Picea) From Seed

Place the seeds in a glass bowl of lukewarm water and soak for 24 to 48 hours.

Drain the seeds but do not let them dry out completely. Place moist seeds in a zip-loc plastic bag with some sterile substrate (spaghnum moss, peat or vermiculite) and place in the vegetable drawer of the refrigerator for 60 to 90 days. Do not allow the seeds to freeze. After the seeds have stratified for 60 to 90 days, remove from the refrigerator.

Alternatively place the seeds in a pot, as below, and place outside somewhere secure where they cannot be accessed by mice or birds and let the winter do the work. In this case sow them in September after the soaking process.

Prepare a potting mixture of 3 parts potting soil, 1 part peat moss, 1 part vermiculite and 1 part sharp sand. Do not use beach sand which may contain salt. Fill 4-inch pots with good drainage with the potting mixture. Place one seed in each pot. Cover the seed with one-quarter inch of potting mixture. Water well. Place in a full sun location, protected from the wind.  Sealing in a ziploc bag will help retain moisture

Keep the soil mixture in the pots uniformly moist. Consistent, even moisture is critical to seed germination. Do not allow the surface of the soil to dry out completely. As seeds germinate and develop, water daily. When seedlings are 8 to 12 inches tall, they are ready for repotting or transplanting to a permanent location.

Growing Fir (Abies) From Seed

Growing Fir (Abies) From Seed

Pretreatment

Seeds of the true fir species are relatively easy to germinate and grow. The dormancy within the seed is short and easily broken. This is achieved by a short period of cold stratification in the fridge.

You can do this by first soaking the seeds in water for 24 hours. Drain away all of the water and place the seeds in a zip-lock bag with a small amount of substrate such as spaghnum moss, peat or vermiculite. Place the seeds in the fridge, it is important that during this period that the seeds do not dry out or are waterlogged otherwise the pre-treatment will be ineffective. After 8 weeks under these conditions the seeds are ready to be sown. In general, the seeds will fail to germinate unless treated in this way, simply sowing untreated seeds in compost at room temperature will not break down the dormancy and germination will be disappointing.

Sowing

Fill your chosen container with a good quality general potting compost. Suitable containers could be plant pots, seed trays or plug trays or even improvised containers with drainage holes. Firm the compost gently and sow the seeds on the surface. If you are sowing in plug trays, sow 2 or 3 seeds per cell. Cover the seeds with a couple of millimeters of vermiculite or failing that a fine layer of sieved compost. Follow with a gentle watering and keep them at room temperature.

Germination will begin a few weeks from sowing. The seedlings are reasonably robust and trouble free and usually grow to a height of between 2 and 5 cm in the first growing season depending on the sowing date and cultural techniques. Densely sown seedlings are at risk from fungal diseases such as “damping off” which can cause rapid loss of many seedlings.

Growing on

Developing seedlings should be fine in full sun, keep them well watered and free of competing weeds. Growth will accelerate in the second and subsequent years and the developing young trees should be re-potted as necessary preferably during the dormant season. After perhaps 3 years they are ready to be planted in their permanent position

Growing Hoya From Seed

Growing Hoya From Seed

Hoya is a member of the large dogbane family and used to be part of the now defunct milkweed family.  The seeds are small and flat and have a silken parachute to aid with dispersal.  Once dispersal has occured the parachute serves no further purpose and will eventually rot away.  In the close confines of a pot, where several seeds may be sown in close proximity, the presence of the parachute is a route in for disease, so best to remove them before sowing.

Sowing

Sow in pots of sterile compost on the surface, just pressing them in.  Water well then seal the pot in a plastic bag to keep humidity levels high.  Germinate at 25 Deg C or so, cooler temps may delay or completely inhibit germination, which ideally should take around 2 - 8 weeks.
During this time watch out for any fungal infections, because once they take hold they will spoil all the seed.  I have taken to sprinkling fine sand around the seeds so as to give the seeds a change whilst suppressing any spores that may try to take hold.  Another method is, prior to sowing, soak the seeds in a dilute bleach solution at the rate of 5 ml to 500 ml of water for about 10 minutes to kill any spores.  Once the 10 minutes are up, rinse them in clean water to remove all traces of bleach.

Growing on

Once the seedlings emerge, change the air in the bag by opening for a few hours, then re-seal.  Once the true leaves develop the bag can come off and the seedling can be potted up once they have outgrown the seed pot.

Grow Tent - A New Experiment

Grow Tent - A New Experiment

Finally took the plunge and invested in a grow tent for seed testing.  Big enough to provide for 115 x 7 cm pots, it should allow me to test pretty much all of my smaller seeds.

So far it has all of my seeds that require very warm conditions, with the bottom heat and the ceramic heater providing air temps of a stable 26 Deg C and soil temperature a few degrees above that.

At this point, I have had Stapelias showing in 24 hours from sowing, Pachypodiums from 48 hours, Astrophytums in 72 hours and my own super hot chilli peppers germinating inside 4 days.

The kit so far includes

1. 120 x 60 x 150 cm Grow Tent
2. 2 x 50 cm square heat mats
3. Minature Fan Heater (400 watts) with thermostatic control
4. 600 LED full spectrum grow light
5. Inline vent fan (not currently being used as I need a close atmosphere)
6. Remote temperature and humidity sensor so I can check temps without leaving the house

As I get results from this, I will be able to modify any care sheets that I have for the more tropical species we stock.

Growing Melon and Cucumber Relatives

Growing Melon and Cucumber Relatives

All of these seeds require pretty much the same treatment when it comes to germination.  The seeds should be pressed in to the surface of the compost, edge on, and then covered to at least the depth of the seed.  Water well, then seal in a plastic bag or place under some other clear cover to keep the humidity and moisture in the soil.  Place somewhere light at that point, a warm windowsill or better still a heat mat or propagator.

Germination

Germination should then be conducted at temperatures between 20 and 25 Deg C, as these are all from warmer areas of the world and need this kickstart to get them to germinate.
Under these ideal conditions, germination should take 7 - 21 days.  Once the seedlings emerge, grow on in slightly cooler conditions, providing some shading from any scorching mid-day sun, as these will naturally germinate in grass or under shrubs which provide such shading.

Growing on

Continue to grow on, commencing a dilute feed regime when they are four weeks old increasing the amounts as the plants get larger.
Annuals may eventually go into grow bags, where they can be grown happily for the season, or into open ground or large pots if you prefer (the former only when the soil is reliably above 6 Deg C day and night and there is no chance of any frost.  Perennials should be grown in large pots unless you live somewhere entirely frost free year round as frost will kill off the top growth and if hard enough it will kill the perennial rootstock which allows the plant to overwinter