This was obviously a great year for Mountain Laurels. Now my large
Mountain Laurel bushes/trees are covered with green seed pods. I
would like to know when one should collect and plant them. Do you
wait until they get red/brown and hard? Do I wait until they fall?
If they get really hard, do I crack the shell before planting? I
would like to get a lot of Mountain Laurels started on my one-acre
lot, and at $6.88 a pop at Home Depot or Lowe's, it gets pretty
expensive. And the $6.88 only buys a one gallon plant, which means it
will be a looooooong time before they are of any size, and if I am on
that time-line, why not just go from seed for free (if I can).

Thanks.

andyd

On Tue, 01 Jun 2004 12:41:46 GMT, Andyd opined:

This was obviously a great year for Mountain Laurels. Now my large
Mountain Laurel bushes/trees are covered with green seed pods. I
would like to know when one should collect and plant them. Do you
wait until they get red/brown and hard? Do I wait until they fall?
If they get really hard, do I crack the shell before planting? I
would like to get a lot of Mountain Laurels started on my one-acre
lot, and at $6.88 a pop at Home Depot or Lowe's, it gets pretty
expensive. And the $6.88 only buys a one gallon plant, which means it
will be a looooooong time before they are of any size, and if I am on
that time-line, why not just go from seed for free (if I can).

Thanks.

andyd

This is what I did. First, you must wait till the pods become completely
hardened and ripe. This can take till the end of the summer ON the tree. When
they are fully dry and hard, crack them open to reveal the red seeds. They are
hard as a rock. I take sandpaper and scuff the shell coat up, carefully, trying
to avoid where the embryo is in the seed. I usually sand the seed on the side
to help avoid that problem.

I soak the seeds in warm water and it takes up to a month or two for the seeds
to swell. After they swell in the water, I continue changing the water every
day (this is very important) and when the seed literally splits and I can see
the cotyledon, I put the seed in moist potting mix (sterile medium) and continue
to keep it watered, not saturated.

The first year the plant sits there and virtually grows about 6 inches. Second
year it also sits quite still, as it is a very slow grower. Third year you can
expect to see a nice flush of growth, but inspect daily for bag worms and use
Bt-k powder to avoid problems with worms.

In about 15 years the plants will be about 6 feet tall and from then on get
larger over the years, but slowly. It's all worth it. Good luck.

Now, you can also go to the library and take out Jill Nokes book about
propagation, cultivation and care for Texas Native Plants.

Victoria


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On Tue, 01 Jun 2004 13:19:31 GMT, escapee
wrote:

This is what I did. First, you must wait till the pods become completely
hardened and ripe.

If you harvest the seeds before they have fully harden, you can plant
them without scarifying them first and they germinate quickly. The
only tough part here is the timing. Wait until the pods start to
brown and open one. If the seeds are showing color (i.e reddish) they
should be OK to plant.

deg

In article ,
escapee wrote:

On Tue, 01 Jun 2004 12:41:46 GMT, Andyd opined:

This was obviously a great year for Mountain Laurels. Now my large
Mountain Laurel bushes/trees are covered with green seed pods. I
would like to know when one should collect and plant them. Do you
wait until they get red/brown and hard? Do I wait until they fall?
If they get really hard, do I crack the shell before planting? I
would like to get a lot of Mountain Laurels started on my one-acre
lot, and at $6.88 a pop at Home Depot or Lowe's, it gets pretty
expensive. And the $6.88 only buys a one gallon plant, which means it
will be a looooooong time before they are of any size, and if I am on
that time-line, why not just go from seed for free (if I can).

Thanks.

andyd

This is what I did. First, you must wait till the pods become completely
hardened and ripe. This can take till the end of the summer ON the tree.
When
they are fully dry and hard, crack them open to reveal the red seeds. They
are
hard as a rock. I take sandpaper and scuff the shell coat up, carefully,
trying
to avoid where the embryo is in the seed. I usually sand the seed on the
side
to help avoid that problem.

I soak the seeds in warm water and it takes up to a month or two for the
seeds
to swell. After they swell in the water, I continue changing the water every
day (this is very important) and when the seed literally splits and I can see
the cotyledon, I put the seed in moist potting mix (sterile medium) and
continue
to keep it watered, not saturated.

The first year the plant sits there and virtually grows about 6 inches.
Second
year it also sits quite still, as it is a very slow grower. Third year you
can
expect to see a nice flush of growth, but inspect daily for bag worms and use
Bt-k powder to avoid problems with worms.

In about 15 years the plants will be about 6 feet tall and from then on get
larger over the years, but slowly. It's all worth it. Good luck.

Now, you can also go to the library and take out Jill Nokes book about
propagation, cultivation and care for Texas Native Plants.

Victoria


Would Mountain Laurel grow faster from cuttings? If you can get the
cuttings to root of course. ;-)

K.

--
Sprout the Mung Bean to reply...

,,Cat's Haven Hobby Farm,,Katraatcenturyteldotnet,,

http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...user id=katra

One approach is to collect the seeds when they are ripe, wait until early
spring unless you have a green house. When you are ready to plant put them
in a container, cover them with boiling water, and leave them for 12 hours.
At the end of that time see some that have swollen. Take these and plant
them either in pots or directly in the ground, if you are going directly
into the ground then I would wait until after the last frost date. Put the
seeds that did not swell back in the container and once again cover with
boiling water and leave for 12 hours. I think you will find that they will
sprout fairly soon. With the abundance of seeds it is also possible to just
go around and stomp the seeds into the ground where ever you think you may
want tree and let Mother Nature do her thing. Most will eventually grow and
I think do better in the long run because you never mess with the root
system.

If you live in an area where it is rocky and there is not a lot of good deep
soil, a good place to stomp some in is on or very near any place that the
fire ants have a mound. Best to take care of the ants first, I believe
(don't have any proof) that where the ants are there is usually a little
deeper soil or at least some extensive cracks in the under lying hard pan. I
have had success in getting things started in difficult areas using this
practice.

Good Luck,




"Andyd" wrote in message
...
This was obviously a great year for Mountain Laurels. Now my large
Mountain Laurel bushes/trees are covered with green seed pods. I
would like to know when one should collect and plant them. Do you
wait until they get red/brown and hard? Do I wait until they fall?
If they get really hard, do I crack the shell before planting? I
would like to get a lot of Mountain Laurels started on my one-acre
lot, and at $6.88 a pop at Home Depot or Lowe's, it gets pretty
expensive. And the $6.88 only buys a one gallon plant, which means it
will be a looooooong time before they are of any size, and if I am on
that time-line, why not just go from seed for free (if I can).

Thanks.

andyd

On Tue, 01 Jun 2004 11:15:14 -0500, Katra opined:

Would Mountain Laurel grow faster from cuttings? If you can get the
cuttings to root of course. ;-)

K.

You would avoid the full year it takes a seedling to become a 12 inch plant!
However, your assertion is correct; it is difficult (I find) to propagate from
cuttings.

V


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http://www.animaux.net/stern/present.html

In article ,
escapee wrote:

On Tue, 01 Jun 2004 11:15:14 -0500, Katra
opined:

Would Mountain Laurel grow faster from cuttings? If you can get the
cuttings to root of course. ;-)

K.

You would avoid the full year it takes a seedling to become a 12 inch plant!
However, your assertion is correct; it is difficult (I find) to propagate
from
cuttings.

V



Right now I'm trying to propagate the local wild perennial chiles by
cuttings. :-) 2 of the 5 I did look good, I mist them daily and have a
greenhouse. I'll probably do more as the bush I have is very large so
can spare a few twigs. G

Hummmmmm... even if one out of ten cuttings took, it' be worth the
effort. Rooting compound is cheap. ;-)

Maybe I'll give it a shot, (there are some ML trees out in front of the
local HEB) and report back in a few weeks.

Having a greenhouse is GREAT! :-) I can get soooo much more done. My
Orchid cactus (Epiphilium) is going insane putting out new pads so I'll
be able to propagate a bunch of those for resale, and I have a large
number of little baby Peruvian Torch cacti coming up from seeds. That is
a first time for me, being able to sprout cactus from seeds...... :-)
PT seeds are not cheap either.

Sorry! I'm rambling. :-P

I highly recommend these greenhouses! The 8' x 8' is very affordable and
they are not as flimsy as they look. They have already been thru one
heavy storm with no damage:

http://www.propools.com/cgi-bin/Soft.../greenhouses/d
reamhouse.htm?E+scstore

K.

--
Sprout the Mung Bean to reply...

,,Cat's Haven Hobby Farm,,Katraatcenturyteldotnet,,

http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...user id=katra

On Wed, 02 Jun 2004 01:29:05 -0500, Katra opined:

Right now I'm trying to propagate the local wild perennial chiles by
cuttings. :-) 2 of the 5 I did look good, I mist them daily and have a
greenhouse. I'll probably do more as the bush I have is very large so
can spare a few twigs. G

Hummmmmm... even if one out of ten cuttings took, it' be worth the
effort. Rooting compound is cheap. ;-)

Maybe I'll give it a shot, (there are some ML trees out in front of the
local HEB) and report back in a few weeks.

Having a greenhouse is GREAT! :-) I can get soooo much more done. My
Orchid cactus (Epiphilium) is going insane putting out new pads so I'll
be able to propagate a bunch of those for resale, and I have a large
number of little baby Peruvian Torch cacti coming up from seeds. That is
a first time for me, being able to sprout cactus from seeds...... :-)
PT seeds are not cheap either.

Sorry! I'm rambling. :-P

I highly recommend these greenhouses! The 8' x 8' is very affordable and
they are not as flimsy as they look. They have already been thru one
heavy storm with no damage:

http://www.propools.com/cgi-bin/Soft.../greenhouses/d
reamhouse.htm?E+scstore

K.

Yes, please do report back on those cuttings.

I do have a 10x20 greenhouse, so know what you are talking about. This year I
sold plants to The Natural Gardener and next year I will have a much better
selection for sale. It does help that I was a professional grower when I lived
up in New York (where I lived most of my life).

Victoria


Need a good, cheap, knowledge expanding present for a friend?
http://www.animaux.net/stern/present.html

In article ,
escapee wrote:

On Wed, 02 Jun 2004 01:29:05 -0500, Katra
opined:

Right now I'm trying to propagate the local wild perennial chiles by
cuttings. :-) 2 of the 5 I did look good, I mist them daily and have a
greenhouse. I'll probably do more as the bush I have is very large so
can spare a few twigs. G

Hummmmmm... even if one out of ten cuttings took, it' be worth the
effort. Rooting compound is cheap. ;-)

Maybe I'll give it a shot, (there are some ML trees out in front of the
local HEB) and report back in a few weeks.

Having a greenhouse is GREAT! :-) I can get soooo much more done. My
Orchid cactus (Epiphilium) is going insane putting out new pads so I'll
be able to propagate a bunch of those for resale, and I have a large
number of little baby Peruvian Torch cacti coming up from seeds. That is
a first time for me, being able to sprout cactus from seeds...... :-)
PT seeds are not cheap either.

Sorry! I'm rambling. :-P

I highly recommend these greenhouses! The 8' x 8' is very affordable and
they are not as flimsy as they look. They have already been thru one
heavy storm with no damage:

http://www.propools.com/cgi-bin/Soft.../greenhouses/d
reamhouse.htm?E+scstore

K.

Yes, please do report back on those cuttings.

Soitenly! ;-D

Been trying to get daddums interested in propagating local xeriscaping
plants for profit. He's 72, bored to tears and has been envious of my
ebay biz and the extra money it brings in. I've been trying to find a
profitable hobby for him since he'd like to make a little extra pocket
change. Horticulture can be immensley profitable if you find the right
venue.


I do have a 10x20 greenhouse, so know what you are talking about.

Ain't it grand??? ;-D

This year
I
sold plants to The Natural Gardener and next year I will have a much better
selection for sale. It does help that I was a professional grower when I
lived
up in New York (where I lived most of my life).

I've had a couple of botany courses and worked for one of my botany
prof's as his lab assistant, so learned a lot about propagation from
him. I also have a couple of excellent books on the subject. I'll go
re-read the chapter on propagation of woody perennials. G I'm
thinking about attempting air layering with the chile.

The local gardenville said that they'd be interested in local
xeriscaping (native) plants, so I want to really give that a shot. I
need to talk to the nursery a bit more as well as the local extension
office to see what people really want for landscaping, then go from
there. Saves a lot on WATER!!!

Wonder if anyone wants Muscadine grapes? lol The fence is covered well
now and I'm fixin' to have to start pruning it back!


Victoria

K.

--
Sprout the Mung Bean to reply...

,,Cat's Haven Hobby Farm,,Katraatcenturyteldotnet,,

http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...user id=katra

On Wed, 02 Jun 2004 11:41:07 -0500, Katra opined:

Wonder if anyone wants Muscadine grapes? lol The fence is covered well
now and I'm fixin' to have to start pruning it back!

K.

Of course I know you are joking!



Need a good, cheap, knowledge expanding present for a friend?
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Which HEB Katra? The old one or the new one. I live just down the
road from you in Wimberley!
With hope and heart,
Kathleen
--
There is more hunger for love and appreciation in this world than for
bread.
~ Mother Teresa

: Would Mountain Laurel grow faster from cuttings? If you can get
the
: cuttings to root of course. ;-)
:
: K.
:
: You would avoid the full year it takes a seedling to become a 12
inch plant!
: However, your assertion is correct; it is difficult (I find) to
propagate
: from
: cuttings.
:
: V
:
:
:
: Right now I'm trying to propagate the local wild perennial chiles by
: cuttings. :-) 2 of the 5 I did look good, I mist them daily and have
a
: greenhouse. I'll probably do more as the bush I have is very large
so
: can spare a few twigs. G
:
: Hummmmmm... even if one out of ten cuttings took, it' be worth the
: effort. Rooting compound is cheap. ;-)
:
: Maybe I'll give it a shot, (there are some ML trees out in front of
the
: local HEB) and report back in a few weeks.
:
: Having a greenhouse is GREAT! :-) I can get soooo much more done. My
: Orchid cactus (Epiphilium) is going insane putting out new pads so
I'll
: be able to propagate a bunch of those for resale, and I have a large
: number of little baby Peruvian Torch cacti coming up from seeds.
That is
: a first time for me, being able to sprout cactus from seeds......
:-)
: PT seeds are not cheap either.
:
: Sorry! I'm rambling. :-P
:
: I highly recommend these greenhouses! The 8' x 8' is very affordable
and
: they are not as flimsy as they look. They have already been thru one
: heavy storm with no damage:
:
:
http://www.propools.com/cgi-bin/Soft.../greenhouses/d
: reamhouse.htm?E+scstore
:
: K.
:
: --
: Sprout the Mung Bean to reply...
:
: ,,Cat's Haven Hobby Farm,,Katraatcenturyteldotnet,,
:
:
http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...user id=katra

In article ,
escapee wrote:

On Wed, 02 Jun 2004 11:41:07 -0500, Katra
opined:

Wonder if anyone wants Muscadine grapes? lol The fence is covered well
now and I'm fixin' to have to start pruning it back!

K.

Of course I know you are joking!


I wish... ;-)

My West fence was deliberately planted with Wild Muscadine grapevines to
provide a "green" privacy fence. They vines are now 3 years old and have
outgrown my wildest expectations! lol The vines in the driveway are
producing much better than last year.

I'm serious about having to prune them. I don't want them overgrowing
the Canna lillies!

I'm considering some air layering for propagation on some of the
sections I plan to prune. Methinks these vines would take over my entire
yard if I let them!!!

Want some? ;-D

They are almost as bad as Kudzu!

K.

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,,Cat's Haven Hobby Farm,,Katraatcenturyteldotnet,,

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In article ,
"Kathleen" wrote:

Which HEB Katra? The old one or the new one. I live just down the
road from you in Wimberley!
With hope and heart,
Kathleen

The big one in the middle of town on Hopkins, just up the way from the
city Library. :-)

I've not shopped there for awhile, but last I saw, there are ML trees
right in front of the facade...

There are also a few on the SWT campus.

K.

--
Sprout the Mung Bean to reply...

,,Cat's Haven Hobby Farm,,Katraatcenturyteldotnet,,

http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...user id=katra

On Thu, 03 Jun 2004 02:19:56 -0500, Katra opined:

I wish... ;-)

My West fence was deliberately planted with Wild Muscadine grapevines to
provide a "green" privacy fence. They vines are now 3 years old and have
outgrown my wildest expectations! lol The vines in the driveway are
producing much better than last year.

I'm serious about having to prune them. I don't want them overgrowing
the Canna lillies!

I'm considering some air layering for propagation on some of the
sections I plan to prune. Methinks these vines would take over my entire
yard if I let them!!!

Want some? ;-D

They are almost as bad as Kudzu!

K.

I don't know why you would propagate it. I highly doubt any of the garden
centers would buy it. You can call around first.


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In article ,
escapee wrote:

On Thu, 03 Jun 2004 02:19:56 -0500, Katra
opined:

I wish... ;-)

My West fence was deliberately planted with Wild Muscadine grapevines to
provide a "green" privacy fence. They vines are now 3 years old and have
outgrown my wildest expectations! lol The vines in the driveway are
producing much better than last year.

I'm serious about having to prune them. I don't want them overgrowing
the Canna lillies!

I'm considering some air layering for propagation on some of the
sections I plan to prune. Methinks these vines would take over my entire
yard if I let them!!!

Want some? ;-D

They are almost as bad as Kudzu!

K.

I don't know why you would propagate it. I highly doubt any of the garden
centers would buy it. You can call around first.

Well, I bought my original vines from a nursery that specializes in
xeriscaping originally, and paid $3.00 each for well rooted plants, so
there must be a market for them. :-)

I imagine that the same people that pay for Lantana would pay for wild
grape? G

I dug up my Lantana's out in the boonies and just transplanted them.
They are doing fine.

K.

--
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