Seed Germination, Easy to Difficult Seeds

Starting seeds.

Different species of plants have different requirements for germination. The ones most people are familiar with are the easy to grow ones...marigolds, beans, etc. Usually, annuals are the easiest: sow at the proper depth, provide consistent moisture and warmth and viola! You have seedlings. Annuals live one year and die. They usually profusely seed and their goal is to quickly germinate when conditions are right because they only have one shot at reproduction. They need to germinate quickly, grow quickly, and reproduce quickly (flower). These seeds contain very little if any germination inhibitor. The most important criteria for planting this kind of seed is getting the planting depth correct. Some seeds need light to germinate. Their seeds should be sown on the surface and not covered with soil. Sowing depth is information provided on the seed packet. If not, the general rule is not to cover seeds more than 3 times their diameter. For really tiny seed, just press into the soil and water gently.

Stratification Then, there are the seeds which require special treatment. Many perennials and biennials need certain conditions in order to germinate. These are adaptations to continue its species in the climate it lives in. Perennials and biennials, which come from cold climates, often need the special treatment called stratification to overcome seed dormancy. I find perennials often have, within one batch of seed, various amounts of dormancy. This is so only a few may germinate right away and the rest become part of the seed bank in the soil to provide seedlings in the future. syngenta seeds An insurance policy of sorts against something happening to the stand of plants. This isn't a very handy strategy to deal with if you want to grow a lot of plants from the seeds. Often perennial seed needs stratification to either cause germination to happen or it unifies and improves germination. The easiest way to stratify seeds is to sow them in the fall in the place they are to grow. Let nature take care of it. Another way, is to sow the seed in a container that can be covered with plastic and put in the fridge or easier still, the seed is put in a plastic bag with damp peat or sand and a pinch of cinnamon to inhibit mold growth and this is put into the fridge for the required time. Sometimes, it's only a week, sometimes it's a few months, sometimes they need to stay in the fridge until they germinate. In some instances, you may need to freeze the seed for a certain length of time.

Sometimes seeds only have a partially developed embryo so they need a period of warmth, then cold, then warm again. The length of time varies by species that have this type of dormancy.

Soaking. Some seeds require soaking in warm water to induce seed germination. Many of the legumes need this. lancer gold Wild sweet peas, lupines, and locust tree seeds all should be soaked before sowing to improve germination. Plant all that swell. Check daily because they can actually swell too much and die. Ones that do not swell, either are dead or latent. You can try the next method to help improve germination of the latent ones.

Scarification is another seed treatment that is sometimes needed to get seeds to germinate. Some seeds need to have water impermeable hard seed coats abraded or nicked to allow water to get into the seed to start the germination process. This can be done with a knife, sandpaper, or a file. Only go into the seed coat until you see light, some shade of white, material. Also, most seeds have an indentation where the embryo is. Do not make this nick near the indentation because you may damage the embryo and the seed will die. I like to scarify on the ends or the opposite side of the indentation. Then the usual procedure is to soak the seed in water. Antracol Seeds which come from fruit often need this kind of treatment. There are seeds from fruit which need to pass through a bird or animal digestive tract. Strong acids in the gut damage the seed coat. Most people do not have access to strong acids to do this and physical scarification may be the only practical method.

Another method is to soak the seed in a plant hormone that will stimulate seed germination. Again, most people do not have access to this chemical and the following can be used as an alternative.

Natural wood smoke has been found to stimulate seed germination. The wood from the seeds' environment works the best, but other smoke may be just as valuable. Smoke discs can be purchased, liquid smoke flavoring, or catching smoke from a fire on a damp cloth, are all viable means of obtaining smoke. There are compounds in the smoke which overcome dormancy, as if a fire just passed through their environment and the landscape needs repopulating with plants.

Some seeds need a combination of all these methods. How is someone to know what a seed needs to germinate? There is an incredible website put together by Tom Clothier (search by that name) that is a huge data base of species and their requirements. Other sources are seed packets, but I've often seen them listing sowing conditions which will not result in germination. It's best to check another source.

Remember, the success of starting seeds comes with finding out what conditions the seed needs to germinate and then provide those conditions. It's that simple.