I love plants that will kill you.This is my second year trying to grow from seed.I can not get the seeds to germinate.Anybody know the secret?Edge
Belladonna from seed
they are notoriously difficult to germinate. i have not been successful, although i did have a wild variety appear overnight in my garden last year. did you cold stratify them? the planting tips from the source that i use for unusual plants says to plant seeds in winter "or use the cold water soaking method: Soak seed for 2 weeks in cold water (an old vitamin bottle kept in the fridge works). Replace the water daily with fresh cold water--this is to imitate snowmelt. When removed from the fridge and planted, 70% of the seeds should germinate in 2-4 weeks (the rest will germinate subsequently, even the following year). Transplant to partial shade in spring after all danger of frost is over (it can be grown indoors). Belladonna grows best in soil that has lime ("sweet" or calcareous soil), lots of organic matter (think woodlands), and it needs a well-drained but not dried up spot."
quoted material from http://www.alchemy-works.com/atropa_belladonna.html
Edge, good luck with your efforts, it is a beautiful plant. Here is a closeup of the bloom.
After two years trying.I finally have 1 sprout.I hope it makes it.Thanks,Edge
Way to go Edge. I gave up from seed and bought a plant, thinking it would not survive the winters here. But, it has!
Yep, the soaking method helps a lot, but you still have to be patient with the germination once you get them out of the water and put them into sterile planting medium. But I have regularly grown belladonna from seed using this method.
I used GA-3 at 300 PPM on a paper towel, and they germinated nicely.
i would love to have some of the seed from anyone that has any or small seedling and yes i know they will kill ya . my wife is the kill ya plant person and loves any pland that will do so so any one that knows on any seed or has any seed of nany kind that will name them properly i would like to get some for her
Dmail me ( She has asked me for days )
Thank You
The Sarg
I bought a very healthy plant from Crimsage Sage Nursery (mail order) two years ago. It grew nicely until last winter, which killed it. I was wondering if it would self-sow, as it had tons of berries on it, but have not seen any seedlings so far. Good luck with it - it is a very nice plant. A warning re toxicity - apparently the seeds are not unpleasant to eat and are quite toxic. I can see how they would be attractive to a small child as they are plump and shiny black - very appealing. Be cautious.