I recently received a couple of Rehderodendron (presumably macrocarpum) fruits from a friend. The only information about propagation I have been able to find thus far is in The Jade Garden, which says that propagation from seed is relatively easy. I was told they came from a small group of several trees, so hopefully they contain viable seed. My question is: how should I go about planting these seeds? The fruits seem very woody and hard, and I have no idea how to, or whether I should even try to extract the seeds from them. Thanks
I'd plant the whole thing. It's a float, evolved to fall in moving water and carry the seeds within to new sites - where it is probably buried by muddy soil under suitable circumstances. Dove trees also produce multiple embryos contained within a single unit, that succeeds if it falls into moving, disturbed soil that will soon bury it, or another situation where the fruit does not sit out in the air and deteriorate.
Thanks so much for your reply. I found an illustration online at Flora of China, and it looks like the seeds are pretty well stuck within the fruit.
