I managed to get one magnolia tripitala to survive the winter.

==>>> you mean indoors in winter ????

perhaps you would do better if you stored them.. and dealt with planting very late in winter.. so as to get them outdoors faster ...

in other words.. deal with germination indoors.. but grow them outdoors ...

trees are very hard indoors... if you havent realized this already ...

unless you failed to mention a greenhouse???

i would also suggest you look into the right potting media ... trees might not like what other plants like .... what are you using ...

ken

No no, it germinated last spring after it had been strarifying for 60 days. Then put them in room temp, some in the porch. I had 6 untill i lst them in the yard and didt find them until spring 2013. One survived and that is planted. I stratify my seeds indoors for the most part, in a fridge

I have grown many magnolias from seed (including M. acuminata) and have also grown C. ovata from seed. The Carya I soak for 24-48 hours, discard any floaters, and then cold stratify for about 90 days in any moist medium of your choice. I have used both milled sphagnum and coconut fiber with good success. For the magnolias, I remove the fleshy colored fruit from around the seed right after harvesting, soak for 24 hours, and then put them in cold stratification right away. The most important things I have found with magnolia seed is to check for mold frequently (at least once weekly) and never let the seed dry out between collection and stratification. Some years I dip the seeds in a captan (fungicide)solution prior to stratifying. Using those methods, they come up like bean sprouts for me. I'm going to start some seed from M. stellata 'Royal Star' and 'Waterlily' this year.

I've grown the fringetree, cucumber magnolia and hickory from seed here in Minnesota, from Minnesota-sourced mature trees that have survived -40F in the past.

-The fringetree can be a PITA to sprout. It needs warm AND cold stratification to grow. I just planted 50 seeds in a tupperware container of peat/sand mix last week. They'll stay on top of my fridge at room temp for the next 3-4 mo, until the roots have grown sufficiently, then into cold stratification for another 2-3 months. With luck they'll sprout green shoots in early June.

-Magnolias are no problem, just remove the pulp, give them a quick wash with some water and a drop of dish soap, and stratify in peat or moist sand for 60-90 days.

-Hickories, I just plant where I want them to grow permanently, because they put down such a long damn taproot! It's no fun to transplant 6" seedlings with 12-18" carrot-roots :-(

Ive read that the fringe tree can be a pain. The same warm cold stratification process too. "easy" just a bit.... needy.

I have also read that hickories should be planted on site. The root can apparently double the above pot/ground growth. Probably a good idea to cage them so the squirrels dont get them.

Thanks for the insights