Re: Clivia seeds and germination

not ceres, but thanks, jim. i've saved it, and if mine has set seeds and the seeds mature, i shall appreciate your advice.


At 11:03 AM 3/30/03 -0500, you wrote:
Ceres:
  Back I am and on to what I know about Clivia seed
germination. Seeds are quite large, about the size of
a moonflower seed (Calonictyon esculentum for the
botanically correct...). They don't need any special
treatment like stratification or oscillation.
   I plant mine slightly embedded in a coarse potting
mix (Pro-Mix because it's available, likely Fafard
would do as well). Most South African growers do it
this way, sometimes not even embedding; Deno says they will
germinate in the dark (subsurface) at 70 degrees quite
quickly, so I gather light or dark germination do equally
well. Best to use a light and airy mix, rather than a wet,
dense one.
   The first thing to happen is the emergence of a radicle
which becomes a root. I have seen photos of seeds with the
radicle/root growing along the surface. If it wants to do this,
best to drill a little hole in the mix with a pencil and
reposition the seed to persuade the radlicle/root to grow
down the hole, and re-embed the seed. I'm growing mine
in a small polystyrene cup covered with a baggie. Bottom heat
will likely help; because I have none and the house is still
cold, things are slow for me. The South Africans grow seed
pots in the open in lath-houses, as I'd do if I lived where
IJ does.
   If conditions are sub-optimal, the seed _could_ get a
bit of mold, so you want to keep an eye out for that and
treat with fungicide and ventilation. I give my seeds a
10 minute bath in 3% hydrogen peroxide before planting in
hopes of preventing mold.
   After the radicle/root, the first leaf emerges, and the
resulting leaf/root pair treated like any other plant seedling.
A very weak fertilizer solution administered every now and then
will help things along; 'weakly, weekly', as the orchid growers
do for adult plants. Seedlings don't want to be in strong sun,
but the brightest shade should make for stocky vs. long floppy
leaves.
-jrf
--
Jim Fisher
Vienna, Virginia USA
38.9 N 77.2 W
USDA Zone 7
Max. 105 F [40 C], Min. 5 F [-15 C]

---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE GARDENCHAT

---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE GARDENCHAT
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index