Re: HYB: seed planting

Mike -- I don't trust bagged topsoil, so I stick with an old-fashioned recipe. I buy topsoil that is commercially produced locally (1/3 raw topsoil, 1/3 sand and 1/3 well-rotted leaf mulch) and delivered by truckload, since I use it to renew my beds and build new ones. Then, in a wheelbarrow, I mix 1/3 topsoil, 1/3 sand and 1/3 spaghnum moss. I bake that mix for an hour and a half in an old turkey broiler (outdoors, you can bet!). I can bake enough in a day to plant a couple of thousand seeds in 1-gallon pots at about 30 to a pot, if I start early enough. This kills the weed seeds and any other unwanted things that are in the commercial topsoil and sand and produces a medium that is free of bad stuff, but contains nutrients. There's no frost heave if you mulch the pots with something like white pine needles. In some years, I have used my wheelbarrow mix without baking it, and have gotten just as good germination, but have had to deal with weeds in the pots. Everyone has his or her own preferred method, I know, but this one gives germination that is pretty high and pretty steady, and the sprouts can stay in the pots until they're 6 or 8 inches tall, if need be, though it's preferable to plant them earlier than that, of course. I mention all of this because I hate to hear of you losing seeds because of a bad planting medium. -- Griff
----- Original Message ----- From: "Mike Greenfield" <mgreenfield@cinci.rr.com> 
To: <iris@hort.net>
Sent: Sunday, December 16, 2007 5:39 PM
Subject: Re: [iris] HYB: seed planting
Germination in the past has been very bad for me 10 % to 15%. So I tried something different. In December of 2005 I did the toilet tank soak for 3 weeks then froze the seeds till mid March and planted at that time. 2000 seeds about 80 germinated. They germinated in late May, normal is late April. less than a 1/2 mile from me a friends seeds germinated in late April. I sorted the seeds out of the pots finding half or more mushy and rotted.
In past years after normal germination I would find rotted seeds. The seeds were in 8" mum pots or gallon pots. Those pots were above ground with no protection. December 2006 I replanted most of the good seed from 2006 and about 1500 new ones. about 2,000 germinated. Close to 80%. When my seedlings get about 2" I transplant in 4" pots or 20 oz Styrofoam cups( these have worked out better).
Frost heave is a problem and my potting soil is pretty loose so I added some bagged top soil to possible help this. The topsoil looked spoiled and smelled bad, thinking so what it is dirt. Wrong! Those seedling did not grow well and are still behind. They are behind the ones in straight potting soil right now. There are seedlings from the same cross in both. Also I lost a lot of seedlings in the bad soil. 

Topsoil will not be used again!
In the past I planted some seeds in April from a bee pod and had 3 germinate. I don't remember how many in the pod but would guess 20. And did not save any till the next year. At that time I did not know how to make a cross or plant seeds. 

Mike Greenfield
----- Original Message ----- From: "Linda Mann" <lmann@lock-net.com> 

Subject: [iris] HYB: seed planting
I got a question offlist - what's the latest month of planting outdoors that folks in zones 5 - 9 have gotten successful germination of TBs the following spring?
I figure the answer depends entirely on which parents are being used - at least that's my experience with the refrigeration technique and outdoor germination.
But we all know my experience is limited to iris hell - so this question is for people in more "normal" iris growing areas in a "typical" winter. 

Whatever <that> means anymore! ;-)
--
Linda Mann east Tennessee USA zone 7/8


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