Mr.Dr.K
Sapling
My girlfriend saw some photos of Japanese Cherry Blossoms' and she decided to purchase some seeds for me to sow, as she knows that I'm newly-fascinated with Bonsai.
To Combat Mold, I soaked half the seeds in a bleach/water solution and the other half in a Hydrogen Peroxide solution for 10 minutes before rinsing with cool water to remove the chemicals.
Now, stratification... all twelve seeds will be Cold-Stratified in my Refrigerator's Vegetable-Drawer, and half (6) of them will also be accompanied with scarification which was done with 220-grit sandpaper. I will be placing the seeds in small 1"X1" tubaware-containers with Sheet-Moss soaked in water and rung-out to provide a moist—not wet environment, covered loosely with small plastic bags, allowing some airflow into the container and checking them every few days to ensure consistent moisture.
Fast-forward about 20 days to present-day 01/27/2022; there is some mold starting on the seeds, although, less with the seeds treated with bleach/water compared to the Peroxide. I decided that I should carefully remove all seeds from the moss, rinse them and replace the moss in order to mitigate Mold. Woah! One of the seeds that I soaked in bleach and sanded has just begun to sprout, which is encouraging since this is my 1st go at germinating seeds intentionally. Anyway, I replaced the moss and carefully rinsed the seeds and put them back to do their thing.
My question to those who are more familure with sowing seeds is: when it's time to plant them, any recommendations on the best media to use; seed trays vs small containers for sowing; combating Mold with a small fan vs a light fungicide when sowing; I will be using a fluorescent grow-light, to start them indoors, how much light do I provide, how close can the light be to a young tree without burning it?
Advice and thoughts would be appreciated, thanks!
To Combat Mold, I soaked half the seeds in a bleach/water solution and the other half in a Hydrogen Peroxide solution for 10 minutes before rinsing with cool water to remove the chemicals.
Now, stratification... all twelve seeds will be Cold-Stratified in my Refrigerator's Vegetable-Drawer, and half (6) of them will also be accompanied with scarification which was done with 220-grit sandpaper. I will be placing the seeds in small 1"X1" tubaware-containers with Sheet-Moss soaked in water and rung-out to provide a moist—not wet environment, covered loosely with small plastic bags, allowing some airflow into the container and checking them every few days to ensure consistent moisture.
Fast-forward about 20 days to present-day 01/27/2022; there is some mold starting on the seeds, although, less with the seeds treated with bleach/water compared to the Peroxide. I decided that I should carefully remove all seeds from the moss, rinse them and replace the moss in order to mitigate Mold. Woah! One of the seeds that I soaked in bleach and sanded has just begun to sprout, which is encouraging since this is my 1st go at germinating seeds intentionally. Anyway, I replaced the moss and carefully rinsed the seeds and put them back to do their thing.
My question to those who are more familure with sowing seeds is: when it's time to plant them, any recommendations on the best media to use; seed trays vs small containers for sowing; combating Mold with a small fan vs a light fungicide when sowing; I will be using a fluorescent grow-light, to start them indoors, how much light do I provide, how close can the light be to a young tree without burning it?
Advice and thoughts would be appreciated, thanks!
. Plant in pots covered with wire cage, let nature do its job.
Every area has their idiosyncrasies.
