CULT: Germination Inhibitors

We were talking about planting green seed and germination inhibitors, so
I wrote to Bill Shear (who used to be our resident expert on many things
botanical). He answered back:


> I'm afraid I don't know anything specific about iris germination inhibitors,
> but in other plants they develop as the seeds dry.  Any drying would start
> the process.  To truly plant seeds "green" one should do so before any
> wrinkling of the seed coat.  I recall from long ago--decades--hearing of
> hybridizers in mild climates that planted seed from capsules that had just
> started to open at the top.  These seeds supposedly germinated almost
> immediately.
> 
> Of course, unless you live in a very mild-winter climate, you are then stuck
> with a lot of small, vulnerable seedlings that might have trouble making it
> through the winter.  So, except for some west coast gardeners, I am not sure
> if it would be worth it--as opposed to using stratification and getting
> early spring germination.
> 
> I plant seed in October or November, then refrigerate it for 8 weeks.  After
> warming up, the seeds germinate within two weeks.  By April, I have 6-8"
> seedlings in separate pots ready to set out.  Most bloom the following
> spring.  I am not sure if you can compress it any more than that in a
> climate that has a winter!
> 
> The Pearsons in San Diego germinate seeds in the fall and get bloom in the
> spring on a very significant proportion of their seeds, I was given to
> understand.  Last year I saw their seedling bed and many of the seedlings
> that were only 9-10 months old had multiple bloom-stalks.  They also use a
> fairly heavy fertilizing regime.  I think they are on iris-talk, or were for
> a while.
> 
> Arils have strong inhibitors that are present in very different amounts in
> different seeds, even from the same pod.  Germination may be spread out over
> 20 years in nature, and there are records of pots showing new seedlings 8-10
> years after planting, with a few coming up each year.  Obviously a nice
> adaptation for desert plants, so that all the seeds don't germinate at once
> and succumb to the next drought.


John                     | "There be dragons here"
                         |  Annotation used by ancient cartographers
                         |  to indicate the edge of the known world.

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