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Post by palotz on Sept 5, 2006 14:35:58 GMT -5
Hello all,
I just received some Cephalotus Follicularis seeds from rarexoticseeds.com and I wanted some advice on how I should sow them (soil, container, etc....) ? They have some good advice on the website but I also wanted to hear from those of you who have had success with ceph seeds. How long if any should I cold store them ?
I am also planning to try some by way of TC once my agar arrives (very hard stuff to get a hold of).
Cheers,
Anthony
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Post by mabudon on Sept 5, 2006 14:51:49 GMT -5
Uhh, Ceph seeds are NOT my strong suit All's I know for sure is sow 'em ASAP as they don't have much "stuff" in 'em (other moderators, feel free to un-dumb my language here if you like ) I know curlingguy got the best results from the batch that he distributed, but I don't think that the affair ended well There are a few folks here who should be able to fill the rest in MUCH better
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Post by Flytrap on Sept 6, 2006 0:52:14 GMT -5
from the cephalotus.org site: Seed should be fresh or have been collected then refrigerated for no more than 3 months. Fill a 6inch pot, or shallow tray, with either a 40:40:20 mix of peat, perlite and sharp sand or milled dried spagnum moss. Soak thoughly with rainwater or distilled water. At this point I usually add a Trichoderma solution, but this is not compulsary - just my preference. Place the seeds individually onto the surface of the compost and gently press them into closer contact. Put the pot/tray in a polythene bag or just cover the top with cling film or sheet of glass. Now they need a period of stratification, which in the UK I usually acheive by keeping them in an unheated greenhouse over the winter, in warmer countries - keep them in the fridge (NOT freezer) for about 3 months. Some growers don't bother with stratification at all and still get good germination. Wherever you keep them do not allow them to go below 37 degrees Fahrenheit / 3 degrees Celsius. They should require no further watering under these conditions, but, if the compost starts to look dry, soak the compost from below by standing it in water - do not water from above. After the 3 months have passed move the seeds into a lighter, warmer situation - 68 degrees Fahrenheit / 20 degrees Celsius. The seeds will start to germinate over several weeks or months and will first produce a single tap root and several small leaves/pitchers. Some seeds can take up to a year to germinate, so, don't throw the compost out too soon. When these seedlings are large enough to handle pot them on individually into 3inch pots containing your usual compost. To obtain a mature plant from this method will take several years - prepare for a long wait. and from the ICPS site www.carnivorousplants.org/seedbank/species/Cephalotus.htm : The first approach is by seed which is difficult in two aspects. First, Cephalotus seed is hard to obtain, although it sometimes shows up in the Seed Bank. Even when it does show up, it is often on the “seed donor only” list (i.e. people that have donated enough seed to have a seed credit with the bank). The second problem with propagation by seed is that it is a very SLOW method; you will need a lot of patience! Once you get your Cephalotus seed, you should plant it immediately. Finely chopped sphagnum moss works well as a seed germination substrate. Place the seeds on the surface of the substrate and do not bury them. Water the seeds well and then put the pot into a sealed plastic bag and cold stratify the seeds for 8 weeks. Once the stratification is over, remove the pot from the refrigerator and put is in an area with bright, diffuse light but no direct sun. Leave the pot in the plastic bag. With a little luck, germination should occur after several weeks and although it can take months. The plants are very small to start, so I leave the pot in the bag for a long time while the plantlets grow. Since the plants are tiny, they are easily overgrown by moss, so keep an eye on the moss and make sure it does not overgrow the Cephalotus seedlings--it is not unusual to transplant them to new media several times. When the plants are big enough to safely transplant, then start to open the plastic bag a little at a time over the course of a few days to let the plantlets adjust to the new lower humidity levels. After transplanting the Cephalotus seedlings, the plants should be kept in a propagation terrarium or other place with high humidity until the get large enough (~2.5 cm across) to transition to their final growing place. You can expect to get a mature plant in 3 to 5 years depending on conditions.
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