Hi Steve and all
I have 5 year, 3 year and 1 year old plants, all germinated from
seed. They have been one of the easier plants to grow. I use garden
soil that is amended with some course sand and leaf mold. I just put
the seed in a 6 inch by 6 inch soil filled pot, cover with a little more
soil and a quarter inch of chicken grit, plunge the pot into a sawdust
bed and wait for spring. I've tried orienting the seed on edge in half
the pot, and laying flat in the other, but couldn't see that it made a
bit of difference.
Dave Brastow zone 7A (Western Washington, home of the Phantom summer)