Hi all, I just purchased some seed of Cedrus libani var. stenocoma and very few of the seeds sank when I put them in a cup of water to soak them before sowing. The Pinus aristata seeds that I purchased last year all floated at first, but after a day or so sank to the bottom of the cup. I had almost 100% germination from these seeds. Can I expect that the Cedrus seeds that are floating may also be "good" or are the floaters a lost cause? I will plant them regardless, just in case, but I am curious whether there is a chance that the seed may still be good and just needs to imbibe some moisture so the seed can germinate? Thanks for any info, Mike
Leave them for a couple more days (in chilled water, +1°C) to see if more sink. Cedar seeds don't keep very well, and if they're from a single cultivated tree, the germination may be very low, so don't get your hopes up too much. Wild-collected seed that I collected in Turkey a few years ago had 90% germination though.
Thanks, Michael. More of the seed has sunk, but the cup of water, and seeds, is at room temperature (approx. 20°C or 70°F). I will put the cup and seeds in the fridge since you say the water should be at +1°C. I purchased an ounce of seeds (sorry, I don't know what that is in metric) so I will be happy if even a couple of seeds germinate. I know that Cedrus seeds germinate while it's still very cold outside and the seed will probably germinate once I have sowed the seeds and put the container back in the refrigerator for cold-stratification. Thanks, again, Mike
Hi Mike, The reason for keeping the water cold during soaking is mainly because fermentation and fungal growth are fast at room temps, and these can infect and kill the seeds; also warm temps increase the seed metabolism when there is also less oxygen in the water (oxygen solubility is highest in cold water) Michael
Hi Michael, Thanks. I put the seeds in the fridge last night. I will let them soak until tomorrow and then I will sow them. (I won't have the time to sow them today). Hopefully, I'll get a couple of the seeds to germinate. Mike
Michael, I surface-sowed the seeds last night and put them in the fridge, in a ziploc plastic bag. How soon before I could expect to see germination begin (provided any of the seed is good)? A month, two months, longer? Thanks so much for your help, Mike
