Pre-germinating

Here's a shot of some Diamante (Italian citron) seeds that I collected in fruit form on the California trip, spring of 07. I cleaned the seeds and stored them in the refrigerator till early December. I place the seeds in a damp paper towel, put that into a snack sized zippy bag, then into the small egg incubator (set at 80 degrees), I usually see some activity at about 10 days. I've been pulling sprouted seeds from this batch for a while. This photo shows the various stages of germination...first the (radical) root, then the top growth. I think it's best to plant the seed as soon as you can clearly see the root. Check the seeds every few days. The one on the right is pretty far advanced, 'tho it will still establish and grow. ALWAYS plant the root pointing straight down...even if the seed or top growth is at an angle. By pre-germinating seeds it saves wasted space where/when the seed isn't going to germinate. I also believe that to get the best, strongest plants, choose those that are first to pop!




Here's another photo of pre-germinated seeds...here we have Hall's Hardy Almond and Chinese Chestnut. These seeds were stratified in the frig for 4 months @ 40 degrees. Now they'll be planted into the root trainers....root straight down.

I'm impressed that they germinated after so long of a time..
congrats!!
Gina *BabyBlue*