Little bit of back story behind this cool post I’m about to share with all of you! I was at a greenery this weekend called Bylands Nursery checking out all their tropical plants they had for sale and I came across this neat little pamphlet about staring your seeds indoors so I decided to grab this little book and share with you my new found information that I think really does come in handy when sowing your seeds! There are 3 main techniques that are required to starting “Special Treatment” seeds. You’re probably asking yourself; “why would seeds need special treatment, what is special treatment?” Well my readers it is simple Special Treatment seeds are seeds that you cannot just stick in your dirt and hope they germinate, they most likely will not sprout.
There is a list of different reasons as to why they will not germinate without doing one of the said treatments like; toxins on the outer shell of your seeds, if your seeds have a harder outer shell it will almost be impossible for your seed to push through (or if you leave the seed to do its natural germination process you may be waiting quite a long time.) and another reason is some seeds, mostly perennials, have a dormant or immature embryo which inhibits them to germinate without special treatment.
Now, onto the 3 techniques!
Number 1: Soaking: Soaking the seeds before sowing may be necessary if; you need to soften the hard seed coat or to pull out any toxins or chemicals residing inside or on the outside of your seed that may prevent germination. To get the most out of soaking your seeds what I recommend is getting a shallow dish that can allow your seeds to sit at the bottom while having enough room in your dish to fully submerge your seeds in water. The water should not be boiling hot but it should be quite warm. Let your faucet run on hot for a few minutes and use that warm water. Let them sit for 24 (twenty-four) hours. *You do not have to change the water at anytime in the 24 hours or touch your seeds. The only time you should soak your seeds longer is if you are instructed to, always read the packages your seeds come in just to make sure. Once you have soaked your seeds for the duration of time take them out of the water and sow immediately, DO NOT let them dry out. *Fun tip: Soaking is also a great trick to speed up your seeds germination time, it especially helps for seeds that have a slow-to-germinate process. The embryo inside the seed soaks up the moisture which helps the seed get a good head start on its germination.
A few plants that require soaking:
-Okra, asparagus, avocada, mallow, morning glory, sweet pea, lupines, parsnips, and parsley.
Number 2: Scarification:
Scarification is probably one of the most difficult techniques to master. Only because if you are not careful you can damage the seed to where it will not germinate. Scarification is the breaking of the seed coat. When you have seeds with a hard seed coat it prevents or drastically slows down the germination time of your seeds. To help aid in germination time what you need to do to is CAREFULLY nick your seed with a file (almost like filing your nails if you have a rough edge on them but more gently), using sandpaper to just scuff the perimeter of your seed, or use small scissors. I recommend NOT using the scissor method because you have a higher chance of cutting to deep and damaging the seed embryo.
If your seeds are too small to be handled, you can soften the hard coats by soaking the seeds (Refer to technique number 1)
A few plants that need Scarification:
-Columbine, ornamental cabbage, bleeding heart, daylily, lavender, phlox, primrose, globe flower, and viola species (viola, violet, and pansy)
Number 3: Stratification: Stratification is required then seeds are harvested earlier on in fall and do not have a chance to be subjected to moist-cold temperatures which in the end results in an immature or dormant embryo. Most seeds that need this technique to germinate are perennials. To stratify your seeds, you must mix your seeds with two to three times their volume in moist sowing medium which basically is your good old planting dirt I prefer the standard peat. After you have mixed them together you MUST place them in either a refrigerator or a freezer.
Stratification takes six weeks to three months.
Stratification will not work if your seeds have been chilled in a packet or soaked in water, if your seeds have had this done to them do not stratify them because they probably will never germinate. If you do not have space in your refrigerator or freezer to house your stratifying seeds you can also do this method outdoors but it is essential that your winter temperature drops to AT LEAST 40 Degrees Fahrenheit or 4.4 Degrees Celsius. You can sow them either in the ground or in flats. Keep in mind if you sow them in flats and put them outdoors you have to sink your flats into the ground up to their tops. If you do it this way, and correctly, the seeds will germinate in the spring IF you sow them outdoors in the fall.
A few plants that need stratification:
-Purple rock cress, wallflower, midsummer aster, California poppy, coralbells, sweet pea, chamomile, annual phlox, rosemary, and thyme species.
I hope you all found this helpful and learned something new. Have a go at it and give me your feedback! :)
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