As usual Brent, you've provided me with a wealth of very useful information.

I have one question that bothers me ......
I've always assumed that certain seeds require dormancy before they'll
sprout.
My mother-in-law has a beautiful 30+ year old multi-trunk A. Palmatum
"Bloodgood" growing in her front yard.
Every spring it drops millions of miniature "helicopters" that cover the
lawn, flowerbeds and fill the cracks in the sidewalk. Within two weeks, the
ground is covered in little trees. It usually takes two months of constant
lawn mowing, flowerbed picking and sidewalk pressure washing to rid her yard
of them all. I've filled enough 1 gallon pots with seedlings to go into my
own "Bloodgood Business" !!

Is this normal ?
Obviously the seeds don't need dormancy to sprout.

Thanks for your continued words of wisdom.

Mark Hill - Harrisburg PA - Zone 6


-----Original Message-----
From: Internet Bonsai Club ] On Behalf Of
Evergreen Gardenworks
Sent: Thursday, July 01, 2004 12:06 PM
To:
Subject: [IBC] Amur Maple Seed Germination

At 11:54 AM 7/1/04 +1000, Andrew wrote:
Hi everyone.
I have acquired Amur maple seeds.
I have been told to soak them for 24hrs, the refrigerate them for
2-4months.
I know the risk of fungal attack and so on with seeds so my question is do
I
dry these before refrigerating, and what should I put them in for
refrigerated storage? Envelope, peat moss, container?

Andrew

I soak them, drain off all the water and then mix with an equal volume of
DRY vermiculite. Then I put the mixture in a plastic ziplock bag and pop
them in the refrigerator for the winter. By the time the weather is
suitable for sowing them, they will be ready to germinate. You should get
excellent germination.

The vermiculite soaks up all the excess surface moisture and provides a
reservoir of moisture without leaving the mixture 'wet', which can lead to
mold. Some people use peat moss, but peat moss itself will mold,
vermiculite will not support the growth of mold, it is inorganic. Do not
try to store them like this any longer than necessary. They need about
three months minimum for complete pretreatment.

Hopefully these seeds were fresh, without overdrying. Most Acer seeds don't
store well and should be pretreated immediately after collecting.


Brent in Northern California
Evergreen Gardenworks USDA Zone 8 Sunset Zone 14

http://www.EvergreenGardenworks.com

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