Aaron Hicks wrote:
TheFool queried thusly:


Hello, I'm interested in growing orchids from seed.


Start drinking heavily now, and you'll beat the rush.


I have never grown orhids before but I have grown various mushrooms so I
am very familiar with the sterile techniques required for this
undertaking.


Either way, you'll be growing a lot of fungus. You're already
ahead.


My question is, how long will orchid seeds remain viable after removed
from the pod and refrigerated?


16.8 weeks, give or take four hours.

The answer is irrelevant because the question is invalid. You
don't specify whether they were collected green or mature, how quickly
they were dried, whether they are stored at room temperature, 4 degrees C,
-20 degrees C, -80 degrees C, or in liquid nitrogen. One would also need
to know the subfamily and- preferably- the genus.

Once you have all these data, one can calculate the precise
lifespan of the orchid seed the same way they weigh hogs in Texas:

Secure a pig to a large wooden plank. Put the plank over a log,
which acts as a fulcrum. Add large rocks to the other end of the plank
until it balances like two kids on a teeter-totter. Remove the rocks, and
put them in a large pile. Then summon all your experts to guess how much
the rocks weigh.

It's _that_ simple.


I have found a source for the seeds, for $40 I can get 25 different
varities of orchid seed, but I have to start small (1 species at a time)
and I don't want the other seeds to go bad before I get a chance to work
with them.


Seeds of any plant are like fish at the supermarket: the fresher
the better. Some fish start to stink immediately; others will last a
little longer. And- like guests- they stink after three days.

Some cattleyas may store for 25 years, based on an Arditti paper
a few years back. Some stanhopeas don't last more than a few weeks-
although there are exceptions; I sowed Stanhopea martiana after being in
cold storage for ~2-3 years (I'd have to check for the precise figure),
and it came up like gangbusters in a few days.

Once you get them, they've probably already been refrigerated for
days or weeks or months. A couple more weeks in the 'fridge is unlikely to
significantly change the outcome.

The address in the header doesn't work. Don't send e-mail there.


-AJHicks
The Orchid Seedbank (www.orchidseed.com)
Chandler, AZ



Aaron-

Thanks for the laughs! I needed that!