planting columbine seeds

Does anybody out there in gardenland know how to collect Origami columbine seeds, and how to plant them?

You may want to run that over at this place:

Propagation Discussion Forum: http://davesgarden.com/forums/f/propagation/

Or here: Saving Seeds Discussion Forum: http://davesgarden.com/forums/f/seedsaving/

~* Robin

Everything I have read, from the "experts". states that columbine seeds take up to six months to germinate and some may germinate much faster than others in the same batch.

This is by natures design and I am sure there is a good reason the seeds are this way. We just do not know what the reason is right now.

My columbines make finger-like seed heads after the flowering period; the "fingers" are joined at the base nearest to the pedicel of the flower. Leave the seed pods in place on the plant until they dry up and begin to open on the ends. Then you can cut the pods off and shake out the black seeds, or open the pods with your fingers to free the seeds. Let the seeds air dry for several weeks, then when you are sure they are fully dried out, you can store the seeds in paper packets (properly identify the packet with cultivar name and date of collection) until you are ready to sow the seeds. It is my experience that columbines need cold stratification, so if you have an area in your garden where you want them to grow, try surface sowing your seeds on bare mineral soil in that area. Don't cover them up. Mark the spot with an identification label so you don't forget you sowed seeds there. In the spring, you ought to see seedlings. Good luck!

Joseph

Double mark them - I replanted over a planted area in the fall and now I have tall grass and short wildflowers together - made it a huge mess.... oh well live and learn. Mitch

If you want to sow them in some trays, that's ok. Put some ice-cubes on top and do this for 2 to 3 days, see which ones germinate and pluck them out gentlily, plant in bigger pots; but leave others to take their time. Someone gave me this idea, she says it works for stratifing. Gonna try it as soon as I can find the darn ice-cube trays.

~* Robin

Wow, thanks for the info. I have a question though about the ice idea.
Do you mean put the ice cubes on top of the soil or do you put the ice trays with ice still in them on top of the dirt? If you do that, how do you keep the seeds from sticking to the ice trays?

Also after I let them dry out for a few weeks can I plant them right then or do I need to wait for fall or something? And do they need sunshine to sprout or just warmth? After they sprout, do they still need to be kept moist or will they rot or get a fungus?

ice cubes on top of the soil is what I've heard.... provides intermittant cold that works for some tricky seeds, and as they melt the seedling tray gets watered.

I always put mine aquilegia seeds in the refridgerator for 6 wks before planting them. Then you can plant them and they usually germinate in 2 wks to 6 wks.I have started them in the Winter inside for Spring planting and in the Fall and keep them undercover but in a cool bring place until early Spring when I plant them out. In fact I just started some and have them growing in 4" pots under a tree right now. I will plant them closer to Fall.

Yes, I was wondering if putting them in the frig would work. I have origami variety. I didn't even remember buying these. When they came up I thought they were Hinckley's like the others I have. I would really like to have some more origami's.

I also put mine in the fridge in the fall, and in the spring I just sprinkle the seeds wherever I want them. I don't even cover them. They come up all over.

Cindy

I've put them n the refrigerator in a baggie, folded between a damp paper towel and had them germinate in the refrigerator before I remembered them. Mine ususally just self sow where they want to and I move them where I want them. Once I had a pathway of mulch and it seemed to be a perfect bed for them to germinate in.

Susan

The reason why some seeds come up and others seem to lag is actually nothing more than an adaptive trait. I believe God created seed to do this as a type of "insurance". Let's say the first seed that germinates pokes its little new growth out of the soil a tad bit too early and gets wholloped by a hard frost, that still leaves another round of seed to come up to perpetuate the species. All kinds of evils befall seedlings so its really rather ingenious if you think about it.

Columbine seed generally needs a cold stratification to break the embryo dormancy. You might want to try picking up one of those oyster shaped take home food containers. Fill it with a mix of damp vermiculite and sphagnum peat. You't want it to be damp not moist or wet. Spread that out about 2" deep in your container and then make a little well over in the corner for future use. Drop your seed on top of your mix and then close the lid. Stick the entire container in the frig for about 6 weeks but not less than 4 weeks. Check to make sure it doesn't dry out. If it seems dry, spritz it with a little bit of water from a spray bottle and that should do it. Take it out after however long you decide to leave it in the frig and set it in the sun. You can water it via the well you created and the seed won't go all over the place and float off and down the sides of the container. I love making those little finger wells. If you set the tray outside in a nice partially shady warm spot on your patio, your seed should germinate in about a month or so. If you want it to germinate faster, set it in shady spot on asphalt that radiates heat and that might shave off a week or so.

Good verbs, Equilibrium and others! Learn something new every day in DG!

Joseph

Columbines in Texas--outside from end of Oct until the first of Dec,
:)

Does anybody have yellow columbine seeds? I'm going to have redbud and mimosa seeds by the quarts really soon and I'd love to trade. I've always wanted yellow columbine and haven't found any around here (southern Ohio) since Lowe's sold their last one several years ago and never carried it again.

my william guinness were just thrown in a little pot and i waited until they had 2 or 3 leaves on them and replanted htem. they're doing fantastic and are sending up new leaves every day.

Redbud is a great plant. Mimosa... not so great. It's listed on the Federal noxious weed list. Mimosa is incredibly invasive. There are quite a few states that won't allow it to be imported and there are other states that will follow suit.

http://plants.usda.gov/cgi_bin/federal_noxious.cgi?orderby=comname

Say pollyanna... regarding the yellow columbine, very pretty. I don't have any seed or plants in the yellow but I do have one plant that I germinated from seed in a pale blue that is quite robust. If you would be interested in the plant, I would be more than happy to send it to you after the temps drop down into the 80's for long enough for me to get a break to send it out priority. All I'd need would be a weather forecast of temps around 80F for 4-5 days to be relatively confident it would arrive alive as opposed to crispy. Please pm me if you are interested, no trade is necessary.

Pollyanna, I'm not sure if the yellow columbine we have down here would grow up there. Hinckley's is so tough it grows wild in Big Bend Park in West Texas. It's very dry and brutally hot there in the summer. That variety has adapted to that climate. There maybe yellow ones that will adapt to your climate, but I don't now anything about them.

Equilibrium, we might not be talking about the same mimosa. Mine is a tree that grows 30 to 40' tall. It's also known as the silk tree. I saw that the mimosa weed is called sensitive briar and prickly moses. The mimosa tree is rather prolific, though. Those seed pods have quite a few seeds in them and almost every one germinates. Little trees come up everywhere, but I've found they pretty much have to be cultivated. I have a few in pots to give away to friends, but it's taken 3 years to do it. They are a gorgeous tree and are blooming in southern Ohio right now.

Eastern Redbud, Canadian Redbud, Judas Tree (Cercis canadensis) http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/217/index.html

Silk Tree, Mimosa Tree, Pink Siris (Albizia julibrissin) http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/1764/index.html

~* Robin

Ah, that's the Persian Silk Tree. Native range is Asia. That's invasive in its own right. You can do a search for it using the words albizia + julibrissin + invasive and an entire host of entries will show up with the low down on the tree which has been nicknamed the giant weed tree.

Equilibrium, weed tree would fit it just right. It's a beauty in itself, but I find it all over my yard and in my flower gardens. I pull it up in the gardens and mow it down in the yard, but I do plant some in containers and almost struggle to keep them growing into trees. The rabbits just love the tender tops in early spring. The two in my big dogs' yard have spread into lovely shade trees and they lay under them a lot. However, the trees have also spread into the neighbor's horse pasture. He hasn't said yet what he thinks of them. I expect to hear a chain saw soon!