Germinating now?

[cohan]

oh wow! very cool-i forgot i sent you those, and wasn't sure i'd actually got any seed in the capsules i collected..
did you have any luck with the pyrolas?

[Maggi Young]

New pyrola thread here : http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=6383.0

[Mike Ireland]

To my great surprise & delight I have germinated Ramonda serbica sown on moist perlite in a closed plastic container.  The seed germinated two weeks after sowing. 

Apart from being very patient how should I now treat these tiny seedlings? 

Mike

[Maggi Young]

Oh my word, Mike, I have no idea how you might successfully transfer these tiny babies on to a growing medium and care for them..... I hope that someone has a useful answer for you so that we can all learn a valuable lesson here.  I suspect this is not going to be easy........

[Philippe]

Hi

Outch! You should anyway not wait too long, the roots will get longer and mix with each other, and that will be then very difficult to handle with, or even fatal for most of the seedlings.

I think it's still time to take several parts of the mix perlite/seedlings and put them quite untouched ON the right soil in different little pots and keep them air moist ( but not too much) and temperated untill the seedlings show signs of further growth. Adding some sand on the surface of the soil could also perhaps help for the beginning.
Of course you will loose some of the plants in the operation. But the youngest ones will surely go on as nothing had happened.

You can also prick right now every little plant out, one by one, with much patience, time, precision and love. That would be something for me I love doing such things  And I think that's really how I would do if those Ramondas were mines

[Roma]

I was checking up today on some Tigridia seedlings which were sown late and were still in full growth when the bad weather hit last month.  (I hope they survive)  I spotted a 5cm shoot in another pot and discovered it to be Tropaeolum azureum, sown in January 2008.  The greenhouse temperature has dropped to -7 or less at least twice in the last month.  It seems the cold weather triggered a seed to wake up. 

[cohan]

Hi

Outch! You should anyway not wait too long, the roots will get longer and mix with each other, and that will be then very difficult to handle with, or even fatal for most of the seedlings.

I think it's still time to take several parts of the mix perlite/seedlings and put them quite untouched ON the right soil in different little pots and keep them air moist ( but not too much) and temperated untill the seedlings show signs of further growth. Adding some sand on the surface of the soil could also perhaps help for the beginning.
Of course you will loose some of the plants in the operation. But the youngest ones will surely go on as nothing had happened.

You can also prick right now every little plant out, one by one, with much patience, time, precision and love. That would be something for me I love doing such things  And I think that's really how I would do if those Ramondas were mines

are we saying they need to be moved immediately because they are in sterile medium?(and if so, could they be gently fertilised and left for some time?) or is it something specific to ramonda that says they must be moved?

[Lesley Cox]

I suspect Philippe's advice is best but I wonder what the result would be if you were just to water them very gently into the hollow or valley parts betweeen the perlite grains, and let them stay a while to grow hopefully. I'd do it with a bottle of water with the top screwed on, but loose enough to leak out small dribbles.

[Philippe]

are we saying they need to be moved immediately because they are in sterile medium?(and if so, could they be gently fertilised and left for some time?) or is it something specific to ramonda that says they must be moved?

I think they could perfectly go on growing in the perlite for a while, indeed with some fertilisation.
So from this point of view they don't need to be moved absolutely now.
My remark was just of practical nature. As there are seedlings everywhere, up down, left and right, it can just get even more complicated or impossible in a few weeks to untangle without much damage the thin and fragile roots that will surely have grown.
And if that was not enough, they will also have to grow in a totally new medium for them, so it would be wiser if this transition could be made the soonest possible, in my opinion.

[Maren]

Hi, I would split the batch in half if possible. Let one half continue with some very slight feeding and see what happens. Place the other half on top of some suitable medium:
- prepare the receiving container
- slide a stiff sheet of plastic or cardboard under the seeds & perlite
- slide them gently onto the new medium, disturbing them as little as possible.
As the seedlings grow they will eventually root into the medium.

Of course, I can only speak from experience with orchid seedlings, which can be notoriously difficult to transfer to a growing medium. But generally it is best not to disturb the individuals. We tend to take them place them into community pots. They like a bit of company. Good luck.

[Tony Willis]

I would leave them in the perlite but give them the lightest dusting of silver sand (dry so it does not clog and smother them) to anchor them in and then water with a very weak fertiliser.

I understand from somebody who grows them from seed successfully that warmth in the early stages really helps and brings them on quickly.

[Mike Ireland]

Thanks everyone for your advice/comments.  I think at this time I will use a very weak liquid feed but keep the seedlings in situ, they are only the size of pin heads and my big fingers may do more harm than good if I try and repot at this stage.
Best wishes for the New Year to all,

Mike

[Hristo]

Maybe 5% germination rate here ( 1 out of 20 seeds ) and my chances of keeping this going are slim I suspect;
Tylecodon singularis
The adult is a stunner if you look up a pic!!

[Michael J Campbell]

Can anyone advise me on how to germinate seed of Blandfordia punicea,I have only ever got one seed to germinate and I let it get too dry and lost it after two years.
I have tried everything including smoke but nothing works.

[johnw]

Can anyone advise me on how to germinate seed of Blandfordia punicea,I have only ever got one seed to germinate and I let it get too dry and lost it after two years.
I have tried everything including smoke but nothing works.

Michael  - I have been watering an empty pot for more than 2 years now and have also tried smoke   - kleenex, papertowel and Dumaurier Kings in a poly bag. Still no germination.

johnw