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| Hi everyone, I haven't been here in a very long time, but I would like to ask if I plan to winter sow daylily and hosta seeds somewhere around the winter solstice, do they still need to be refrigerated for a period of time first? Thanks so much,
Ibartoo |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Hosta should give you very good results from winter sowing, no refrigeration required, mother nature will take care of that for you. For best results daylily seeds should be refrigerated within a couple of days after they are harvested. I've only gotten about 50% germination from winter sowing daylily seeds stored at room temperature, my rates went up to about 90% when I started refrigerating the seeds and using the "on the rocks" method on a sunny windowsill during the winter. Hope that helps. |
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- Posted by just1morehosta 5 (My Page) on Sun, Nov 28, 10 at 0:01
| ''ON THE ROCKS" How do you do this?,and why? |
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- Posted by gardenweed_z6a 6 (My Page) on Sun, Nov 28, 10 at 6:34
| Hosta seeds will germinate with or without cold stratification but you can winter sow them and expect to see sprouts, probably in early March. My sprout chart from last year shows I WS hosta seeds on 12/25 and had sprouts 4/21. With the difference between zones, I'm guessing you'd see sprouts much earlier where you are. Winter sowing hosta seeds from variegated plants doesn't mean you'll get variegated sprouts. The two I WS were 'Dream Weaver' & 'El Nino' (both variegated) and all the sprouts were solid green. I found an article on growing daylilies from seed that said toss the seeds in a Ziploc bag with some Perlite and a little water. It said the seeds would sprout in two weeks. They did & I got 100% germination. The seedlings grew on, indoors, the rest of that season, went dormant in the winter, came up again the following spring, repeated the process another year & bloomed this summer. They were seeds from 'Happy Returns' which is the pale yellow version of the popular Stella d'Oro. |
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| After I have let my daylily seeds dry for a few days, I keep them refrigerated until it's time to plant. For the past two years I've winter sowed them, usually in February, and have had very good germination. I think what helps them is how they are dried and stored, if not done properly the seeds will die before you can even plant them. Keeping them refrigerated helps preserve them until you're ready to plant. Karen |
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- Posted by just1morehosta 5 (My Page) on Sun, Nov 28, 10 at 13:58
| Well,I gathered quite a few lily seed, but did not refrigerate them, does that mean they are now not any good? I have given a lot away as well, I wouls hate to think I gave away dead seed,:0( cAROL |
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- Posted by gardenweed_z6a 6 (My Page) on Sun, Nov 28, 10 at 15:34
| cAROL - For your own peace of mind, why not do a germination test so you'll know if they're still good? Here's the one I grew from seed: |
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| They may still be good, keeping them refrigerated keeps them fresh longer. If they've been allowed to dry first before storing them, they should be all right. When they are stored right after being collected, say in a plastic baggie, they can get moldy, or mushy. If they are firm, and not soft, and not moldy, they should be okay. Karen |
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- Posted by just1morehosta 5 (My Page) on Sun, Nov 28, 10 at 23:17
| Eileen,I think I will try that.I don't have any perlite, would a damp paper towel work the same way? cAROL |
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| Thanks everyone, I have been pretty successful with daylily seeds after refrigerating them, but I just wondered about wintersowing and if that would eliminate the need for 3 weeks in the fridge. |
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| I winter sowed daylily seeds a couple of years ago without refrigerating them, and got about 40% germination. I sowed them in either late February or early March. |
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| cAROL, below is a link for the "on the rocks" method of starting daylily seeds. I don't cover mine, they have to be topped off a couple of times a day but since I'm stuck inside all winter long I really don't mind having something to putter with. Your seeds are mostly still good, I'm sure. I'd love to get a germination rate of 40 to 50% on geranium seeds! But if someone spent a lot of money on daylily seeds (I saw a lot of 6 Bass Gibson x Iwanna Piranha seeds go for $300.00 last year) refrigeration is definitely the way to go. Jeanne |
Here is a link that might be useful: Daylilies on the rocks
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- Posted by carmen_grower_2007 4/5 (My Page) on Wed, Dec 1, 10 at 10:03
| I still have daylily seeds from 10 years ago and checked germination last week. All are still viable. I thoroughly dry them, put them in ziplocks and keep in the frig. (forever) As far as WS goes, I haven't had much luck with daylilies. I do much better putting them in a ziplock with a handful of moist peat moss. They germinate in 10 days or less and then I plant them in pots indoors to be transplanted outdoors after hardening off and ground is warm. You will get blooms the following year. |
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