Date: Thu, 3 Dec 1998 11:02:28 -0800 (PST) From: Chris Teichreb <cjteichr@sfu.ca> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg3822$foo@default> Subject: Re: Seed Germination - stratification
Hi Adrian,
> To cut a long story short, to my surprise, the worst results came from the
> freezer treatments and natural stratification (no germination at all),
That's not too surprising, generally Sarr. seeds won't put up with
a lot of freezing (except, perhaps S purpurea). Where are you located?
That may have something to do with why the naturally stratified seeds
failed (ie: if you had below freezing temps).
> second best from the fridge (about 15%) and best of all from the heated
> propagator (about 40%). A control pot in the greenhouse showed only one or
> two germinated seeds. (One weakness in my method was that treatment
> commenced at the same time meaning that actual sowing times varied.)
How long have you waited for the last sown seed to share the above
results? It could be that some are just a little slow in getting started.
Again, no surprise about the high germination since the seed is fairly
fresh. I've been told from a number of sources, plus experienced it
myself, that with fresh seed you don't have to stratify (in fact, Adrian
Slack notes this in his book). Heat has always been known to stimulate
germination in many seeds, and Sarr seeds naturally germinate when temps
increase.
>
> Some other Sarracenia crosses of the same vintage which I also put in the
> fridge showed considerable variation in germination - some much better, some
> worse.
>
> I don't have enough seed to repeat this this year so perhaps someone else
> may care to try something similar?
If you have fresh seed (less than a year), good germination (near
100%) can occur if you just refrigerate it for a few months and then sow
(I got this tip from someone who's been using this technique for over 25
years successfully). I personally stratify in the fridge on damp paper
towel for 5 weeks only and have gotten near 100% germination in S.leuco,
S.minor, S.alata, S.psitticina, and S.flava. I've just sown some S.oreo
(I know, it's early!), and expect the same will happen.
>
> Comments?
>
> Regards, Adrian Arnold.
>
There are so many techniques out there for getting successful
germination of Sarr seeds. Go with what works for you I say!
Happy growing,
Chris
**********************************
Chris Teichreb
Department of Biological Sciences
Simon Fraser University
Burnaby, B.C.
cjteichr@sfu.ca
**********************************
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