A Miracle

ds429@frontier.com ds429@frontier.com
Tue, 15 Sep 2015 13:15:39 PDT
You’re right, Mike, about not giving up. I have had this sort of successful germination with cyrtanthus, hippeastrum, and zephyranthes seeds that have been in storage - not always cold, but always dry - for a year or more. And I have a strong suspicion that the flotation method makes a difference. I think that the “sterile” environment and quick germination that occurs with flotation helps ward off opportunistic molds, etc. Perhaps the chlorine used in water treatment helps too.


Dell

















From: michaelcmace@gmail.com
Sent: ‎Tuesday‎, ‎September‎ ‎15‎, ‎2015 ‎1‎:‎52‎ ‎PM
To: Rick Buell via pbs





Dell raises a really good point: Don't give up. My record so far for
accidental seed storage was some seeds of Moraea speciosa, which sprouted
after about a decade in a drawer inside my house. it's a desert species, so
perhaps not really a surprise.

The weirdest incident was some tubers (not seeds) of Ferraria crispa which
were accidentally stored in my garage for at least five years. No soil, just
sitting in a pot where I had tossed the surplus and then forgot them. The
garage was probably about 60F in winter and 90F in summer.

When I found the tubers they were very wrinkled  and I figured they were
probably dead, but I tried a few in a pot and sure enough, they grew just
fine.

For you new growers, note that this is NOT the normal result of long-term
storage. If you make enough mistakes, you just occasionally run into an
exceptionally tough plant.

Mike
San Jose, CA


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