Penta Seeds

Does anybody know anything about collecting pentas? I can't locate the seed and there's no image (that I can find) on any of the seed sites.

They're tiny. Like petunia seeds. Only a bit smaller!

I saved the whole flower head, dried it and crumpled it to powder, but never used the seed last year, so I don't know if I had viable seed or not. I think Parks & Thompson & Morgan sell penta seed if you want to research germanating conditions.

Yay! I had just about given up on this one. I've still yet to find the seed, but I stopped dead-heading completely a couple of weeks ago so hopefully they'll show themselves soon.

Thanks so much!

Jane, have you tried to take some small cuttings to overwinter indoor on your kitchen's window sill? The cuttings take root easily if you pot them up in small potting soil, mist them often, and keep them in bright light this time of year. :-)

Hi Lily, actually I did take some cuttings....but they don't look like they're doing so great. I started them in a perlite/MG medium on heat under lights, but I omitted the misting step. Now that I know that you've had success with them I'll give it another try.

Thanks for replying!

You're quite welcome, this isn't Pentas, but small cuttings like these take root in maters of a week or two. I started these cuttings on my Cat's Whiskers 3 days ago. With added high humidity outdoor here in my region. I only have to mist them vigorously the first couple of days. Now on 3rd day. They are on their own and seem to do well.

I suppose this really belongs on the propagation forum and I hope no one minds that we're straying from the topic. But my post was up nearly 2 weeks with no response so I'm guessing we're the only ones who are really interested anyway. LOL.

I've just begun to be a cutting propagator ~ mostly with coleus (which is why I have a near 100% success rate.) I believe you're right Lily, that the harder stemmed cuttings need more moisture so I'm going to dome the next cuttings and see if that makes a difference. My prop area is set up in the basement which is pretty dry, so just adding the humidity might be all I need.

Creating domes for your cuttings is a terrific solution for dried environment! Congrats Jane. You're on your way for more success in the near future. I hope if we're on the wrong forum, admin will help us move the post. Best of lucks, I'll sign off. Pleasure chatting/sharing with you.
Happy gardening,
Kim