Re: HYB: germination experiment

Loic, I use an inexpensive, small wine cooler (bought for the purpose) and/or refrigerator to chill seeds for 2 (or 3, or 5) months.
The "burrito" method was described here, I think by Dana Brown. Seeds are usually harvested, dried for a week or so, then soaked for about a week changing the water every day(one of the Oz folks suggested soaking in stockings in the toilet tank - water reservoir). Then the seeds are rolled up in a damp paper towel, burrito style, put in a loosely closed baggie (poly film sandwich bag) in the fridge. 


but What is a chiller and what is a burrito?
Christian - Yes, damp, soak paper towel in water, squeeze out excess. You are right - they are definitely kept moist. I meant they were pre-soaked the usual way - not immersed in water (i.e., the toilet tank soak) for a week, changing water, to leach out water soluble germination inhibitors.
Are your burritos damp? If they are damp can you really say they are not getting soaked?
I didn't use paper towels this year, except for the one cross chilled for 5 months. The rest were kept damp by the moisture in the pod. Before, I only changed the paper towel if it disintegrated when I was checking seeds, not the usual case.
Are you changing the paper towel at all?
The pods only <felt> gooey/sticky on the surface - most were pretty much still intact when I shelled out the seeds to plant them. Pods had turned brown and looked pretty much like I would expect them to look if they had been outdoors, unharvested. On their way to being compost, but not there yet. I posted some photos the day I planted them (October)
I remember you mentioning the gooey remains of the pod, which I would have felt compelled to dispose of.
Loic, I cycle germination pots in and out of an unheated enclosed "sun" porch (I think I posted a photo a year or so ago) during the winter to try to get maximum germination in as short a time as possible. That's why I like to cram all the seeds from one cross into a tiny pot (4 x 4 inch). After three weeks of chilling, there are usually some seedlings ready to germinate. I bring pots "indoors" where temperatures are cool enough (below 60oF), keep them in for a month, transplant the seedlings that have germinated, then put the pots back out for more chilling (unless it is cold enough on the porch to chill them there).
After they are settled and growing well, I usually move the transplanted seedlings outdoors into a cold frame or similar protection until spring temperatures are warm enough to be sure they won't be killed (i.e., above ~25oF). 


So you're going to keep all these pots inside?
Let us know what happens. For most of my crosses, 6 weeks isn't enough to start germination, and now I'm starting to think 3 months isn't enough either! 


  For what it's worth I may be able to contribute to the data set on longer total chilling here in a few weeks.  My seeds are all on a second six week cold cycle right now.    Christian   ky


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Linda Mann east Tennessee USA zone 7/8
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