Tropicals & Tender Perennials: Update on purchased B. arborea seed, 0 by bettydee

bettydee wrote:
I purchased this seed from The Banana Tree. The seeds I received did not look like arborea seeds which are supposed to be larger. I was also fortunate enough to receive a few from a generous DGer. Those seeds can be traced back, through many generations, to one of Tonny's arboreas. Those seeds were quite large by comparison.

I started the seeds in early December and ran into problems almost immediately. I normally use Park sponges to start my seeds, but decided to try community pots instead. I sterilized the seeds and soaked them in water for 24 hours, but the compressed "medium" disks were supposed to be sterile so I just hydrated them. Then I sealed the pots in baggies. Within days I saw fungus growing on and near the seeds — damp-off. In a panic, I brewed a concentrated chamomile solution, removed and threw the baggies away and liberally sprayed the seeds and soil opting to use the chamomile spray to keep the soil moist. The chamomile tea really works!

So far, only one seed of the arborea seed from the DGer. I took this photo a few days after the first true leaves started to appear. This little guy is very hairy.