Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
So - having brought 4 or 5 home, has anyone experience of sowing these, time
of germination, general preferences etc? For those who haven't seen them, they're extraordinarily large - one description has them as the bowl of a small pipe! -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.co.uk South Devon http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/ |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
"Sacha" wrote in message ... So - having brought 4 or 5 home, has anyone experience of sowing these, time of germination, general preferences etc? For those who haven't seen them, they're extraordinarily large - one description has them as the bowl of a small pipe! -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.co.uk South Devon http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/ I have not got a clue about this one nor would I like to hazard a guess. Jungleseeds sell the seed and Peter is very obliging at answering email enquiries about stuff like this. |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
"Sacha" wrote in message ... So - having brought 4 or 5 home, has anyone experience of sowing these, time of germination, general preferences etc? For those who haven't seen them, they're extraordinarily large - one description has them as the bowl of a small pipe! -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.co.uk South Devon http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/ I thought eucalypt seed was fine and dust like inside the containers? Normally it will disperse after fires but if you crush the seed to get it out then the advice is to surface sow the debris and not bother to try and remove the chaff except the big bits of case. I don't know whether that applies to all but it has certainly been the case with all those I have tried to date. I have now given up as although I get them to germinate and grow, the wind soon has them over. I think they are great trees as the shade is light and the smell is wonderful (and said to deter mossies!) -- Charlie, gardening in Cornwall. http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk Holders of National Plant Collections of Clematis viticella (cvs) and Lapageria rosea |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
On 27/9/06 23:48, in article , "Rupert (W.Yorkshire)"
wrote: "Sacha" wrote in message ... So - having brought 4 or 5 home, has anyone experience of sowing these, time of germination, general preferences etc? For those who haven't seen them, they're extraordinarily large - one description has them as the bowl of a small pipe! -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.co.uk South Devon http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/ I have not got a clue about this one nor would I like to hazard a guess. Jungleseeds sell the seed and Peter is very obliging at answering email enquiries about stuff like this. Thanks Rupert. I'll drop him a line. -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.co.uk South Devon http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/ |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
This has been shifted out of Eucalyptus and is now Corymbia ficifolia.
Those pods contain quite a few seeds and provided they are sufficiently ripe, will yield enough seed for a forest or two. Subjecting them to a lot of heat for a very short period should persuade them to open. Rather like many Eucalypts, the seed only tends to be released after a fire, so throwing the pods into the fire for a few minutes or burning them on the gas hob should do the trick. You could take a hammer to them, but a lot of these things germinate far more readily if they have been subject to heat and smoke. This is a marginally hardy tree (only in the south west) that can withstand temperatures to about minus 3C before any damage is incurred. It does reasonably well in large pots, where its size will be restrained. Flowering takes place after about 5 - 6 years, but there's no guarantee for the colour - it could be white, pink or scarlet. Even when out of flower, the leaves are very handsome, so once it has reached a decent size it will look good regardless of flowers. |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
On 28/9/06 09:28, in article
, "DavePoole Torquay" wrote: This has been shifted out of Eucalyptus and is now Corymbia ficifolia. Those pods contain quite a few seeds and provided they are sufficiently ripe, will yield enough seed for a forest or two. Subjecting them to a lot of heat for a very short period should persuade them to open. Rather like many Eucalypts, the seed only tends to be released after a fire, so throwing the pods into the fire for a few minutes or burning them on the gas hob should do the trick. You could take a hammer to them, but a lot of these things germinate far more readily if they have been subject to heat and smoke. This is a marginally hardy tree (only in the south west) that can withstand temperatures to about minus 3C before any damage is incurred. It does reasonably well in large pots, where its size will be restrained. Flowering takes place after about 5 - 6 years, but there's no guarantee for the colour - it could be white, pink or scarlet. Even when out of flower, the leaves are very handsome, so once it has reached a decent size it will look good regardless of flowers. And following on from this - while we were in Madeira we saw the aftermath of several forest fires, most/many of which involved Eucalyptus plantations in the higher areas. The Eucalyptus were chosen for planting there because there is high rainfall in Madeira and these trees both take up a lot of water and help stabilise the ground. Their water absorption helps to prevent vast quantities of rainwater racing down the hillsides to cause damage or even just to swell the already existing and very beautiful waterfalls! However, as these trees had been severely damaged by fire, we wondered if there would be nay hope of regeneration or whether, seeds having fallen perhaps, there will now have to be a frantic thinning out of future baby eucalypts! -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.co.uk South Devon http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/ |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
"Sacha" wrote in message ... On 28/9/06 09:28, in article , "DavePoole Torquay" wrote: This has been shifted out of Eucalyptus and is now Corymbia ficifolia. Those pods contain quite a few seeds and provided they are sufficiently ripe, will yield enough seed for a forest or two. Subjecting them to a lot of heat for a very short period should persuade them to open. Rather like many Eucalypts, the seed only tends to be released after a fire, so throwing the pods into the fire for a few minutes or burning them on the gas hob should do the trick. You could take a hammer to them, but a lot of these things germinate far more readily if they have been subject to heat and smoke. This is a marginally hardy tree (only in the south west) that can withstand temperatures to about minus 3C before any damage is incurred. It does reasonably well in large pots, where its size will be restrained. Flowering takes place after about 5 - 6 years, but there's no guarantee for the colour - it could be white, pink or scarlet. Even when out of flower, the leaves are very handsome, so once it has reached a decent size it will look good regardless of flowers. And following on from this - while we were in Madeira we saw the aftermath of several forest fires, most/many of which involved Eucalyptus plantations in the higher areas. The Eucalyptus were chosen for planting there because there is high rainfall in Madeira and these trees both take up a lot of water and help stabilise the ground. Their water absorption helps to prevent vast quantities of rainwater racing down the hillsides to cause damage or even just to swell the already existing and very beautiful waterfalls! However, as these trees had been severely damaged by fire, we wondered if there would be nay hope of regeneration or whether, seeds having fallen perhaps, there will now have to be a frantic thinning out of future baby eucalypts! -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.co.uk South Devon http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/ The Madeirans are wishing they had never planted them, they are not killed by fire but will regrow from the lignotubers as well as forests of new trees, and even the goats don't keep them down. But for those of us not used to such large stands its a wonderful atmosphere walking through a eucalypt forest the scent is wonderful -- Charlie, gardening in Cornwall. http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk Holders of National Plant Collections of Clematis viticella (cvs) and Lapageria rosea |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
On 28/9/06 09:12, in article , "Charlie
Pridham" wrote: "Sacha" wrote in message ... So - having brought 4 or 5 home, has anyone experience of sowing these, time of germination, general preferences etc? For those who haven't seen them, they're extraordinarily large - one description has them as the bowl of a small pipe! -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.co.uk South Devon http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/ I thought eucalypt seed was fine and dust like inside the containers? Normally it will disperse after fires but if you crush the seed to get it out then the advice is to surface sow the debris and not bother to try and remove the chaff except the big bits of case. I don't know whether that applies to all but it has certainly been the case with all those I have tried to date. I have now given up as although I get them to germinate and grow, the wind soon has them over. I think they are great trees as the shade is light and the smell is wonderful (and said to deter mossies!) Thanks, Charlie. I don't think you've seen David Poole's post about this. He refers to the need for fire, too - bit like the pesky Romneya! -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.co.uk South Devon http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/ |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
Sacha wrote:
Very many thanks for all this, David - just what we needed! When you say there's no guarantee as to colour, do you mean that because we picked up seed from a red flowering tree, the flowers won't necessarily be red from our seedlings? Yes. Flower colour is naturally variable and a red/orange flowered parent will not necessarily yield 100% same coloured progeny, although in *pure* ficifolia you might reasonably expect a 'selfed' red, cream or pink to produce similar seedlings. Complications arise because ficifolia readily interbreeds with a very closely related, larger growing species - C. calophylla. This has broader, even more handsome leaves, darker coloured bark and flowers that are predominantly white or pink. Whilst it is relatively easy to identify even non-flowering plants of either species when compared side by side, hybrids between the two are far more difficult. Unfortunately, in cultivation there seems to be many of these hybrids or trees with this lineage several generations back. As a result, a tree that has 'selfed' from a parent that has 'selfed' from an original ficifolia x calophylla can superficially appear to be ficifolia, but produce seedlings that have a variety of colours. Add to this the natural variability of ficifolia and the likelihood of a range of colours is quite high. To be honest, I'm sure you'll be delighted with the results whatever the colour. A characteristic of both species is that they flower after they have completed their growth for the year and that flowers are carried in large, showy clusters well above the foliage. In most true Eucalyptus, the flowers are borne singly or in small clusters within the leaf axils and are often partially hidden by the leaves. Even a cream coloured variant amongst your seedlings will have considerable 'wow' factor when in full flower. |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
"Charlie Pridham" wrote in message
"Sacha" wrote in message So - having brought 4 or 5 home, has anyone experience of sowing these, time of germination, general preferences etc? For those who haven't seen them, they're extraordinarily large - one description has them as the bowl of a small pipe! I thought eucalypt seed was fine and dust like inside the containers? Normally it will disperse after fires but if you crush the seed to get it out The easiest way to do this is to put it in a paper bag and put it in a closed car on a hot day. The seed pods will crack and scatter the seed into the bag. I've always used this method but sometimes by mistake. I found an interesting tree with amazing seed heads in the middle of the most God forsaken plain in inland NSW and dropped one of the heads onto the vinyl that sits around the gear stick of our farm truck. Now I've got to figure out hos to get up teh seeds that have fallen out into the folds of vinyl. I have now given up as although I get them to germinate and grow, the wind soon has them over. I think they are great trees as the shade is light and the smell is wonderful (and said to deter mossies!) Make sure you never give them any phosphate. Aus is deficient in phosphate. |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
"Sacha" wrote in message
However, as these trees had been severely damaged by fire, we wondered if there would be nay hope of regeneration or whether, seeds having fallen perhaps, there will now have to be a frantic thinning out of future baby eucalypts! Eucs are famed for their capacity to recover from fire. Very quickly they sprout again from the truck and later from the branches, not all branches but most of them. In a few short years, you'd never know that a fire had been through, except for the blackened trunk. Mind you they also go up like tinder boxes in a fire - don't plant any near the house. |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
On 30/9/06 06:47, in article
, "Farm1" please@askifyouwannaknow wrote: "Sacha" wrote in message However, as these trees had been severely damaged by fire, we wondered if there would be nay hope of regeneration or whether, seeds having fallen perhaps, there will now have to be a frantic thinning out of future baby eucalypts! Eucs are famed for their capacity to recover from fire. Very quickly they sprout again from the truck and later from the branches, not all branches but most of them. In a few short years, you'd never know that a fire had been through, except for the blackened trunk. Mind you they also go up like tinder boxes in a fire - don't plant any near the house. I'm glad to hear they're likely to recover because really large areas were blackened. And yes, we did think of how quickly and easily they must burn. There were houses in the area and one had scorched earth right up to its front porch. They must have been frantic, poor souls. We could see smoke rising up in the hills from where we were staying down in Funchal and were told that they've had about 3 forest fires this year simply due to intense heat. -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.co.uk South Devon http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/ |
Eucalyptus ficifolia seeds
"Sacha" wrote in message
"Farm1" please@askifyouwannaknow wrote: Eucs are famed for their capacity to recover from fire. Very quickly they sprout again from the truck and later from the branches, not all branches but most of them. In a few short years, you'd never know that a fire had been through, except for the blackened trunk. Mind you they also go up like tinder boxes in a fire - don't plant any near the house. I'm glad to hear they're likely to recover because really large areas were blackened. And yes, we did think of how quickly and easily they must burn. They actually go off like bombs because of the volatile oils in the leaves and in high winds they can cause spot fires kms ahead of the main fire front. In 2003, 500 houses burned to the ground in Canberra (the Capital of Aus). These were houses in the suburbs. There were houses in the area and one had scorched earth right up to its front porch. They must have been frantic, poor souls. We could see smoke rising up in the hills from where we were staying down in Funchal and were told that they've had about 3 forest fires this year simply due to intense heat. They are very scary things. During the 2003 fires we had burned leaves on our lawn and we are about 70 kms from where the fires were. They also were found about 200 kms from where the fires were. We have started fire preps (like cleaning out gutters etc) now with summer coming |
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