In message
Charlie Pridham wrote:

In article ,
says...
A fruit cannot be bigger than the plant that bears it. You could not
have an apple on a grass, it couldn't feed it. A pineapple is a big
fruit, but it is borne on a big plant. Likewise a maize cob.


Have you seen pineapples growing? I would say the fruit weighs a lot more
than the plant.

How long does it take to do that. And as for cucumbers and suchlike,
they are mostly water.

Michael Bell


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How many years does an alder take from seed to bearing cones?

In article ,
Michael Bell wrote:
In message
Charlie Pridham wrote:

A fruit cannot be bigger than the plant that bears it. You could not
have an apple on a grass, it couldn't feed it. A pineapple is a big
fruit, but it is borne on a big plant. Likewise a maize cob.

Have you seen pineapples growing? I would say the fruit weighs a lot more
than the plant.

How long does it take to do that. And as for cucumbers and suchlike,
they are mostly water.

Hubbard-type squashes aren't - they have a fairly high sugar and
starch content, and often weigh a lot more than the plant.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

In message
kay wrote:


Michael Bell;894053 Wrote:

My plan is to breed for bigger seeds by traditional plant breeding
methods and the starting point for that is seeds from
naturally-occurring alders.

--

How many years does an alder take from seed to bearing cones?

On Tyneside 6-7 years, but in America 3 years I hear. But I am trying
to shorten it by collecting my seeds in year 0, germinating them in
year 1, grafting them onto spurs of side-branches of adult trees, this
is in places where new growth would be expected to produce catkins and
cones in year 2.

I have been having problems with this. I germinated my seeds in trays
on a window sill and they grew about a foot before I took midsections
out of them to graft onto the adult trees. Not many have taken and
none will now produce catkins and cones next year, the adult trees
have now produced next year's catkins and cones. I think the room for
improvement is :-

Germinate the seeds earlier so that they are bigger and fleshier by
the time they are used for grafting. This means germinating them in
warmth and under light. There is a place near me which sells gear for
this, my children agree that it is sold for cannabis growing, but
honest officer, I am completely innocent!

Better grafting technique. Grafting such small stuff is a hand skill
and I think I have learned it. Grafting wax is just impossible to use
"in the wild" away from a bench, it goes solid before you even get
there and I don't want to carry burning candles with me. These are
small GREEN shoots and I think Arbrex contains general poisons which
are effective against fungi on stems with bark, but which soak into
small green pieces and kill them. So I have decided to use Vaseline
for sealing and Hellermann sleeves for holding the scion onto the
stock. They are very effective, but like all things, there is a knack
to them.

Next year is next year and I hope and to do better then. Wish me luck!

Michael Bell




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In article , kay.6b616a6
@gardenbanter.co.uk says...

Michael Bell;894053 Wrote:

My plan is to breed for bigger seeds by traditional plant breeding
methods and the starting point for that is seeds from
naturally-occurring alders.

--

How many years does an alder take from seed to bearing cones?

red alder only takes about 7 years.I grew them because they have
larger cones, very handsome in winter when trees are bare. Size of cone
doesn't mean larger seeds though; they are still only about the size of
dandruff.

Janet B

In message
Janet wrote:

In article , kay.6b616a6
@gardenbanter.co.uk says...

Michael Bell;894053 Wrote:

My plan is to breed for bigger seeds by traditional plant breeding
methods and the starting point for that is seeds from
naturally-occurring alders.

--

How many years does an alder take from seed to bearing cones?

red alder only takes about 7 years.I grew them because they have
larger cones, very handsome in winter when trees are bare. Size of cone
doesn't mean larger seeds though; they are still only about the size of
dandruff.

Janet B

Yes, I have seen red alders, Alnus rubra, American alder, in parks in
this country, a very big tree. But the wood is used for the bodies of
electric guitars. You can't get cooler than that!

Michael Bell


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